Crauss and the Dragon
by ThatOneSalmon
Summary: In the Orryn Region, Valkyries protect people from criminal groups. One such Valkyrie, Blake Trotsky, is sent to a trainer's camp to investigate a former league champion, Yorick Crauss. But when the worst case scenario becomes reality, and Blake's close friend forms a romance with Yorick, the Valkyrie is forced to act. This story is dark, relentless, and not for the faint of heart.
1. Introduction

Introduction

A young adult found himself in a small, dark room, sitting in a cold metal chair in front of a table that was bolted to the ground. The only source of light was a white lamp hanging above the table, which scarcely illuminated his face; dark brown hair barely reached his eyebrows, and partially draped over his ears. His somewhat rounded cheeks gave way to a defined jawline, above which were average sized lips, an average nose, and piercing blue eyes. The young adult looked at a manila folder sitting on the table in front of him, and the cover read his name; "Blake Tobias Trotsky. Valkyrie Number 404669-627."

Opposite of Blake, the only door into the room inched open, hinges squeaking slightly. A uniformed police officer slid in, a stack of papers in his hand, and he steadily closed the door behind him. He pulled up a chair from the side of the room, and sat down across from Blake.

"Hello, Lieutenant," Blake said, identifying the other man by the vertical silver bar on his navy-blue uniform.

"…Hello Blake," he answered, taking a deep breath and sinking into his chair.

Blake and the officer stared each other down. The Lieutenant shifted left, then right, attempting to get comfortable. He pushed Blake's file aside, and placed the stack of papers in the center of the table, looking down at the cover page in front of him.

"I read through the incident report here, and…" the Lieutenant started, only to close his eyes and raise two fingers to the bridge of his nose, drawing another breath.

"I don't understand," he looked up. "What happened at that camp? And why? There are still a lot of unanswered questions, Blake, and I need your cooperation on this."

Blake nodded slowly, leaning back in his chair as his eyes turned to the stack of papers on the table. The events in question occurred a long time ago, and Blake took a long breath as he attempted to recall them.

"…Things are very rarely entirely as they seem," Blake began, returning his gaze to the officer. "The key, is to try to grasp the bigger picture. Understand the greater forces at play. Work out what their goals, strategies, and end-games might be. Only when you understand this, does the larger picture begin to emerge."

Blake straightened his posture. He took another quiet breath.

"I see this lesson in all of my days as a Valkyrie, but nowhere was this more apparent than at the Camp Crauss Trainer's Retreat. I also saw, Lieutenant, that when faced with a threat to our very humanity, there is always a cost. For me, it cost a friend. For him, it cost his life. And for her…" he sighed, looking back to the table. "It cost her everything."

The Lieutenant stared at the Valkyrie, then picked up the incident report again. After opening the stack of papers, he read for a moment in silence.

"…Do you regret what you did, Blake?" the Lieutenant looked up.

The younger man leaned back again. He looked to the door and blinked. Twice.

"…No," Blake answered, looking back at the Lieutenant. "Not anymore. I mourn for my friend to this day, but in the end, I do not regret what I did."

The Lieutenant nodded, and blinked back at the Valkyrie. He slowly, steadily slid back in his chair.

"I'm gonna need an extra hand for this one," he mumbled to himself, planting his hands on his knees and rising to his feet. "Lemme get a secretary, Blake. I'll be right back."

Blake gave a nod. The Lieutenant turned and shuffled to the exit, taking one more long breath as he opened the door.


	2. Chapter 1: Morning Routine

A Pokemon Story: Crauss and the Dragon

Chapter 1: Morning Routine

"Rise and Shine, Fire cabin!" Noah shouted. "Time for breakfast!"

A chatot flapped its wings directly above me, the air slapping my face and sheets and pillow. I raised a hand and waived it away, where it promptly returned to Noah's bed next to the bedroom door, on the other side of the room. Our cabin leader returned to his music note pokemon's side, letting his long black hair fall over his broad shoulders, and his brown speckled eyes glinted as he grabbed his cell phone and turned up the music. Boy band pop; not my genre.

I sat up in my twin-sized bed, rolling my neck as my left hand fumbled for a tee-shirt behind me. The 20 or so campers in the room were also rising from their beds. A couple were standing on the hardwood floor, stretching and blinking hard, while others were still rolling around in their covers. Their beds and mine were made from faux logs, as were the walls of the cabin around me. Above the doorway was a clock, which read, "7:27 A.M, March 23, 0215." Today was Sunday; the last day of our two weeks at Camp Crauss Trainer's Retreat, deep in the heart of the Vyzoc Mountains.

"Blake, you're actually up?" Noah stood from his bed and started towards me.

"Yeah," I finally found my tee-shirt, buried in between the bed and the cabin wall, grabbing it and putting it back on. "Must be a miracle."

"Good timing too!" he stopped at the foot of my bed, leaning on its frame. "You're usually out of bed by the time everyone else is out the door!"

"You know I haven't been sleeping well," I tossed the sheets off of me and turned, letting my feet touch the ground. My legs were stiff, and cold; only basketball shorts covered them, leaving the hairs on my shins to stand on end.

"I'm just messin' with ya, Blake," a big smile showed itself on Noah's face, creasing the tan skin on his cheeks. "Is it just the altitude?"

"No, it started before I got here. Now that I think about it, this started, when…"

"When what?"

"Oh, nevermind," I shook my head, reaching down to my dark-blue duffel bag on the floor and pulling out a spiral notebook. "It's nothing, really."

"Alright then," he shrugged. "Well we're goin' in a couple minutes so be ready!"

"Got it."

Noah turned and started back towards the middle of the room, while I set the notebook down on my lap and looked out the window directly in front of me. Right outside the second-story window of Fire cabin was the central courtyard of the camp, a huge, steel bell was hanging by wooden supports at ground level, a blacktop path encircling it. On the other side of the courtyard, the clubhouse theater was visible, with a giant wooden tower labeled "The Claim Jumper" looming behind it, both also made of faux logs. In front of the clubhouse was a small wooden stage, where several people in dark green uniforms were setting up speakers.

A tall, muscular figure, in a matching dark green uniform with a vest full of pouches and pockets and a belt full of pokeballs, walked onto the stage from the steps on the left side. He had short red hair, a beard that ran all the way around his firm jawline, and stern brown eyes that stood out from his fair skin tone. That was Yorick Crauss, the camp's founder and owner, giving orders to the staff on stage with him. Yorick is a former Pokemon League champion, and he made this camp several years ago to share his knowledge on training pokemon.

I looked down at the notebook on my lap. It had a black, unmarked cover, specs of dirt dotting the front. I opened the notebook and checked the inside cover, where my Valkyrie Oath was laminated in the center. It read, "I, do solemnly swear, to defend the citizens of Orryn and the world, from the evils of crime, terror, and oppression, and seek to destroy those who cause it. I will carry this task, until I draw my final breath, so other after me may live on in peace."

"Hey Blake!" someone stopped next to my bed. "I think this is yours!"

I looked up, seeing another boy standing at the foot of my bed. He was shorter, slightly stockier. He was wearing white basketball shorts and a black tee-shirt, which bore a nametag reading "Matt Valentine." One of his hands ran through his short blonde hair as he fixed his bed-head, and another extended out to me, holding a necklace. The necklace was indeed mine; a small, black stone with a yellow circle in the middle, attached to a piece of worn, white string.

"…Thanks, mate," I eventually answered, taking the necklace from his hand.

"No problem," Matt's green eyes shown, the lips on his soft-shapen face turning to a smile. "It's a sweet necklace. What is it?"

"It's… symbolic of an umbreon. Was my brother Colin's."

"Was? Oh," his face dropped. "What happened to him?"

"…It, was only a few weeks ago. I don't wanna talk about it."

"Oh dang, man. I, had no clue."

"It's cool, it's cool. Don't worry about it. …What time is it?"

Matt glanced back. "7:30."

"We should probably get going. Lemme write a journal and throw on a pullover real quick."

"Sounds good. I'm gonna put some real clothes on."

Matt turned, and started walking back towards his bed. I looked out the window, where campers were trickling out of the cabins, forming a crowd in front of the stage. Yorick was still standing on the stage, setting down a microphone stand and raising the mic-holder to chin-height. A member of his staff handed him a microphone, which he took and planted in the stand.

My eyes fell to the necklace in my palm. The lights overhead shone on the stone, the yellow circle was highlighted on the black, polished texture. I untangled the string, pulled it over my head, and tucked the stone under my shirt, before returning to the notebook on my lap. I flipped through the pages, stopping on a blank one about a third of the way through, grabbed a pencil from my bag and started to write:

"Day 14. March 23, 0215.

Yorick has made no further statements about his stance on government. I have asked him to elaborate earlier in the weeks, but all he's done is restate what he's said before; his father was wrongly imprisoned, the National Parliament accepted bribes in the past, and that ultimately, all forms of government are incompetent and should be abolished. He seems particularly fond of bringing up the Sagna Power Plant, claiming the explosion that destroyed it a few weeks ago is a perfect example of a government's failure; the moron has no idea what he's talking about.

However, Yorick has recently added six salamences to his ranks. During camp counsel last night, he mentioned that he's making them a standard security feature. I don't think people understand that salamences are usually employed to guard maximum security prisons. He must be planning something, but I don't know what it is, or more importantly, when it will happen."

"You coming or what, Blake?!" Matt sat down next to me, fixing the collar on his dark-green button-down shirt.

"Yeah, just a sec," I closed my notebook. "You know I got this journal to write. Professor Redwood was adamant on writing every day here."

"Okay, but everyone else is leaving!" Matt slugged me in the arm and jumped up, heading for the door. The other campers were starting to trickle out of the room. I tucked my pencil away with my notebook, got off my bed, and began rummaging through my bag.

Among my other clothes was a light grey pullover, which I grabbed and pulled over my head. As I stuck my hands through the sleeves, I continued searching through my bag, moving aside an empty water bottle and a group photo of everyone here during these past two weeks, staff and all. I started to worry when I couldn't find my pokeballs, but I stopped myself; they weren't there. Most of my pokemon were with the camp staff; campers weren't allowed to have pokemon with them during the retreat. I sat up and reached into my pocket, feeling one condensed pokeball inside, only as big as a coin. The ball shook slightly at my touch; he was still with me. I nodded, stood up, and followed the other campers out.


	3. Chapter 2: Special Announcements

Chapter 2: Special Announcements

"Ok, Emma, breathe," I whispered to myself in the mirror as I put on my settin' powder. "It's my last mornin' walk with Yorick. No freakin' out this time!"

I looked at the clock next to the mirror – "6:28 A.M. March 23, 0215" – time to get goin'! I fixed up my makeup bag, that had my name in cute, yellow cursive letters; "Emma T. Turner." When my settin' powder, mascara and lipstick was away, I looked back up at my lighted mirror to double check all my makeup. Lips're bright red and looked big, and I tried to wipe off lipstick with a tissue; nothing came off. All good. Then I checked the contours on my kinda-tan cheeks, brought out a nice oval shape, kept my nose small and even, those were good. Eyebrows, thin and even, all black, good. Eyelashes long, little smoky shadow, made my hazel eyes jump, good. Hair straightened, dark brown all the way through, nothin' stuck in it, good. Ready to go!

I turned off my mirror lamp and spun in the chair, bendin' down to my grey fur boots behind me. I was sittin' in front of the vanity on the main floor of Fairy cabin, just enough light by the sun from the windows to see everythin'. My boots were just in front of a little wood table in the middle of the room. Off to the left was the front door, and some comfy leather chairs sat by 'em windows on the other side of the vanity. By the right of the table was a couch, which was just in front 'a the staircase up to the bedrooms. On the table was my navy sweater, cowl neck and super fuzzy on the inside. It was my favorite sweater, and went perfect with my dark-wash skinny jeans; perfect for our last walk!

After I tied up my boots I grabbed my sweater off the table and threw it over my tank-top. It was still a little toasty cause I just took it outta the dryer; love a warm sweater on a cool day! A big breath filed me up and I let it all out with a sigh. No more dawdlin'. I finally got up, pushed my chair in, and walked to the door.

As I closed the front door behind me I looked around, as I cut straight 'cross the court with the bell in it. The air was garden-fresh and a bit cold; perfect sweater weather! The sun was peakin' out of the clouds high over the mountains around. All the buildings here looked like they were made of logs, but they weren't real logs. Off to the left were cabins Fire, Rock, and Steel, then off to the right were cabins Bug, Grass, and Water. Next to Steel cabin was Dragon's Claw, the food hall where we had all our meals. On the other side of the road from Dragon's Claw was the clubhouse theater, and behind that was the big Claim Jumper swing; I could never ride that thing! By the clubhouse was a trail that lead down to the lake, which went into a little river that led off camp.

I started walkin', past the staff buildin', the bigger two-story buildin' that was next to the lake path and had two little wings on the sides, and went down the road towards Blissey's Clinic, the nurse place. Behind the clinic was a little hill, and you could see all the camp from there. But instead of goin' up there, I went left in front 'a the clinic, to the hiking trail.

Down the path and swingin' right, I stopped when my heart skipped a beat. Yorick was standin' just ahead, lookin' at me with those brown eyes and a grin on his face. He was a whole head taller than me, and he had that light-grey long-sleeve with three buttons runnin' up to his collarbone. Those brown, fancy boots on his feet were neatly laced up, and the ankles on his real-dark blue jeans were rolled up just a bit. He had a buzz-cut 'a deep, auburn hair, a trimmed beard that gave away an amazin' jawline, and smilin' brown eyes, which were right on mine.

"Good morning, Mrs. Turner," Yorick's deep voice nearly made me shiver.

"Good mornin'," I said back with a smile.

I walked right up to him. He turned 'round and we started 'long the path real slow, which went down the mountain and along the river in the valley. I stuck right by his side; my hand was already playin' with my hair. It's a habit I'll never break.

"You've grown greatly as a trainer over these weeks, Emma," Yorick looked at me.

"Thanks," I looked back just for a sec. "You helped me so much with those one-on-one lessons."

"They certainly have been productive," he nodded, still grinnin'. "What is the most important lesson in being a pokemon trainer?"

"Loyalty above all else," I smiled. Didn't even need 'a think it out.

"Correct," he nodded again. "You learn very quickly, Emma. I like that about you."

All I could do is grin bigger. My cheeks were burnin' up. I moved my hand close to his hand but my heart was spazin' out, so it just brushed the back of his instead. Yorick smiled and inched closer.

We got to the bottom of the hill and went slightly right, followin' the river towards the taller mountains. They were beautiful; green and leafy, dotted with all colors of flowers. Bunnelbys chased each other on the riverbanks, and a pidgeot flew over us. It was startin' to warm up a bit, and a tiny breeze blew in our faces, blowin' my long brown hair up behind me.

"…You said you are from Twilight Town, correct?" Yorick asked. "What's it like there?"

"Ehhh," I shrugged. "It's real quiet. Right in the shinin' forest, so we get travelin' trainers sometimes."

"A quiet town? Does it ever get boring?"

"I mean, sometimes. Got Ruva close by though. Best friend of 12 years's bound to keep me laughin'!"

"I suppose so," he chuckled a bit. "Well, if you ever find yourself bored in Twilight Town, you are always welcome here."

"Ya mean that?" I looked up at him.

"Of course," he looked back at me and smiled.

"Oh wow," I just smiled. "Well… I'd help ya out 'round here if ya needed it, I dunno. Organizin', cleanin', anythin' you need, Yorick."

"I appreciate that, Emma," Yorick still had that warm smile on his face. "…In fact, that gives me an idea."

"What is it?"

Yorick stopped on the path, next to a tree right by the river. He turned to face me as I stopped right with him. I looked into his eyes; couldn't help another smile.

"…Would you be willing to extend your visit right now?" he asked. "If it doesn't interfere with-"

"Yes!" I blurted out. "I'd love that!"

"I would too," he smiled back. "Because all I need from you is your company."

I glanced at the ground again, then back at him. My cheeks had 'a be bright red now. He was just lookin' into my eyes, and his head tilted just a bit.

Yorick turned back towards the hikin' trail, still lookin' at me as he reached over and took my hand, wrappin' his fingers in mine. My fingers curled around his; they were strong, but still really soft. I couldn't help but smile even bigger as we started down the trail again, together.

* * *

We walked 'round the corner of the path and saw the clinic up the hill. I found a big breath, and let it out again. Yorick's fingers loosened and our hands fell back to our sides.

"I enjoyed that, Emma," Yorick smiled and looked at me.

"Me too, Yorick," I looked back at him. My cheeks had 'a be bright red by now.

"We will be doing announcements before breakfast today. They will be big announcements, so make sure your cabin-mates are present. After that, we may discuss extending your visit here in the staff building."

"'A course," I smiled bigger.

Yorick nodded, as we got to the top 'a the hill and went back towards the courtyard. A stage was set up by the clubhouse, and a whole group 'a people was formin' around it. People from Steel, Rock, and Grass cabins were walkin' into the group in neat lines. Some camp workers, wearin' all dark green uniforms, were lugin' a big speaker onto the stage.

"I will see you in the crowds, Emma," Yorick started 'cross the court.

"See ya up there," I answered, comin' to a stop right in front 'a the main circle. Yorick nodded and turned, passin' the bell in the middle and the stage in front 'a the clubhouse. Some people in the crowd started callin' and pointin' at Yorick, who smiled and waived as he went past them, goin' for the front door of the staff building and walkin' inside.

"Emma!" a gal's voice called as someone burst outta the crowd and started running towards me. She was just a bit shorter than I was, and just a little bit stockier than me too. Her short, curly brown hair bounced up and down as she passed the bell, and she brushed some hair outta her emerald-green eyes with a big ol' smile on her face. Her olivish skin on her face and hands was shinin' bright, and matched well with her red plaid button-down, worn skinny-jeans and brown-leather boots.

"Ruva!" I called back to her and took a couple steps. Her smile only got bigger as she ran across the grass, then the asphalt path.

"How'd it go how'd it go how'd it go?!" Ruva slid to a stop right in front 'a me and started bouncin' up and down.

"Well," I quieted down, puttin' the back 'a my hand under my chin. "He took my hand."

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Ruva could've jumped through a cloud if she bounced any higher. "He likes youuuuuuuuuuu!"

"I knoooowwww!" I whispered loudly. "He even said I could stay here longer if I wanted to!"

"You two are gonna be sooooooooo cute!" she stopped bouncing and leaned in. "You'll go out on dinners in Capitol, and we'll all start some fundraiser battle tournaments, and he'll be there to referee, and we'll donate all the money to the Equal Rights Association of Orryn-"

"Ruva," I put my hands on her shoulders. "Breathe."

Ruva took a big breath, pursin' her lips as she did, her shoulders goin' up and down with her. She stared at me with big, green eyes, before burstin' out laughin' and nearly doublin' over. Another big smile was stuck to my face, and I couldn't hold back a laugh myself.

"You really, heh, heh, had this all planned, didn't ya?" I said.

"Yep!" Ruva stood up straight, just a tad shorter than myself. "It's gonna be so fun! Assumin' he'll keep all those anarchist ideas aside for a bit."

"He's made big donations to the E.R.A.O., Ruva," I smiled a bit. "He just wants to make the world a better place."

"I know, I know, and I like 'em for that," Ruva turned a bit back towards the bell. "But how ya get there's important too. And I don't need to say that getting' rid of ALL government at once is a bad idea."

"Ehhh," I shrugged. "It's a bit different when he says it. Come on, Matt and Blake are probably down in the crowds by now."

"Yeah, let's go!"

She turned 'round all the way, and I got next to her as we started strollin' back to the middle of the court, where the group 'a people had only gotten bigger. More of Yorick's green-outfit people were fiddlin' with the speakers on either side 'a the stage, and Yorick himself was puttin' a microphone in the stand right in front, now wearin' the same dark green uniform.

"Didn't you know Matt and Blake before we got here, Emma?" Ruva asked.

"I knew Matt!" I said. "He and I took some online lessons with Professor Redwood once! Only met him in person here, though."

"That was, what, two years ago? Three?"

"Somethin' like that," I shrugged.

"I wonder if he knows any-"

"Hey Emma! Hey Ruva!" one of the gals was wavin' at us from a small group at the side 'a the crowd, long blonde hair, narrow face.

"Hey Lucy!" Ruva and I said at the same time. Three other gal's stopped and looked over at us; Lindsey with her short, straight red hair, Donna with her awesome leather jacket, and Tina with a really cute red dress.

"Hey girls!" they all said.

"Heeeyyy!" we said back. They all turned back to each other and started talkin' again, as we got to the edge of the people and stopped.

"Anyways," Ruva kept goin'. "I wonder if he knows any more of Redwood's students."

"Still thinkin' 'a that tournament idea?" I asked.

"Yeeeeeah," Ruva shrugged.

"Ya know Blake's one 'a his students. He talked about a charmander he got from Redwood."

"Why's that?"

"Says it was his first time with a pokemon. Somethin' he'll never forget, he said."

"Right, right," Ruva nodded. "He's a good trainer. Bet he'd be strong fighter in the ladder…"

"My gosh, Ruva," I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"I am very excited!" she stomped her foot a bit. "It'd be fun!"

"It would, but we ain't there yet! Maybe a little down the line, we'll see where things're at."

"Okay, I'll let it go for now," Ruva sighed. "But just you wait. It'll happen, I promise!"

I just smiled and looked up towards the stage. One 'a Yorick's guys, one with really short blonde hair, blue eyes and a boney face, walked up to Yorick and whispered somethin' in his ear. Yorick nodded and went to the microphone.

"Testing, one two three, sibilance," Yorick's voice came outta the speakers next to him. His hand reached up to the mic and grabbed it, his bicep flexin' slightly as he pulled it outta the stand, his chest risin' and fallin' with a breath…

Someone pushed my shoulder. I looked back; Blake was starin' at me with those blue, blue eyes 'a his, a little evil grin on his face. Matt was standin' next to him, tryin' not to chuckle.

"What do _you_ want?" I narrowed my eyes and grinned back. Matt couldn't hold a giggle back, and Ruva was quick to laugh again.

"You were staring at Yorick again, Emma," Blake said, still grinnin' just a bit.

"Oh for gosh sake, Blake!" I turned towards him. "Why do ya make a big deal outta this?"

"I think it's you who's making it a big deal," Blake just grinned bigger. "There's really no shame in admitting attraction to an older man, Mrs. Turner."

"Don't you flip this on me," I couldn't help a smile. "Besides, he's 24; ain't that much older."

"So you admit it then!" he leaned in.

"No! Well- Shut up!" I slapped at his arm, hut he only smiled bigger.

"You're carrying this all the way to the end, aren't ya Blake?" Matt grinned.

"You know it," Blake chuckled.

"What are ya so interested for, anyway?" Ruva asked. "Seems like you're always askin'."

"Well, it's not every day one of the biggest names in Orryn starts going out with someone I know," Blake shrugged. "Just a little curious is all."

"Askin' for EVERYTHIN' we do ain't just a little curious, Blake," I leaned in and grinned.

"Isn't it? I'm hard-pressed to say this little affair isn't interesting."

"May I have your attention, please," Yorick's voice boomed out the speakers.

People around us stopped talkin' and looked to the stage. Yorick was standin' over everyone in the middle 'a the stage, with the mic in the stand right in front 'a him. Six or seven of his people in the same dark-green outfits were standin' just by the steps.

"Speaking of," Blake's grin dropped at last, standin' up straight and crossin' his arms.

The whole camp got real quiet. The sun came out from behind a cloud. Yorick's eyes looked through the people in front 'a us.

"…These were fun weeks for all of us, I think it's fair to say," Yorick said.

Everyone burst into clappin' and cheerin'. Some people jumped up and down. Blake only nodded.

"Wooooooooooo!" I shouted to the sky.

"Yeaaahhhh!" Matt added.

Yorick put a hand up, and we all settled down. It got quiet again. The workers shuffled a bit off-stage, they were watchin' Yorick too.

"…I have personally seen many of you grow greatly as trainers at this very camp," Yorick looked left, then right. "It is beyond a doubt in my mind, that every single one of you is well on your way to becoming a great trainer of pokemon."

Ruva, Matt and I started clappin' our hands, joinin' the crowds of campers in applause. Blake just nodded again, and the clappin' died down.

"…It is people like us – trainers, with a passion for pokemon and a drive to change the world – who truly shape this great region of ours. We push for freedom and justice by raising awareness, holding tournaments, and when absolutely necessary, fighting against those who would seek to suppress our rights. Let us not forget the brave men and women who fought against Team Siphon, until the Sagna Power Plant explosion a few weeks ago."

Blake rolled his fingers on his arm. Matt and Ruva scooched over to us a bit, standin' on their tippy-toes to get a bit-better view.

"There have been many before us, but now it is our turn. Even with Siphon gone, there are still many who cause crime, corruption, and fear in our daily lives. Our National Parliament seems more inclined to celebrate the fall of Team Siphon, as opposed to address the issues that we face today. And if they will not do their part, we are left with no choice; we, must, act."

Blake's fingers stopped rolling. His eyes turned narrow. Matt and Ruva looked up quietly.

"As of today, a new organization is born. Those of you here will be the first of many to join. Our mission will be to solve the problems that our parliament has neglected, the problems that we have paid the price for. Once our work is done, we will leave the people to do as they wish, we will leave them truly free. And we will give ourselves a name, one that represents our just and necessary actions; we will call ourselves, Team Gamma."

No one moved. Ruva's eyes went wide. Matt raised an eyebrow. Blake's face went blank, his hands slowly fallin' his pockets.

"…Your current visit here has been extended, at no extra charge," Yorick looked from right to left. "As mentioned the night before, security has been increased slightly. Please keep the camp rules in mind; be open and honest to your cabin mates. Show respect and compliance with all camp staff. And do not leave the camp grounds for any reason. Details of your free extension will be provided later today. Thank you for your time; you are dismissed for breakfast."

With a whoosh of air, five blue dragons with red wings flew overhead from behind us, goin' over the valley and circlin' 'round the mountain, comin' back over again. The people quietly turned, and started shufflin' to the mess hall.


	4. Chapter 3: Differing Mindset

Chapter 3: Differing Mindset _(Blake)_

Emma glanced up to me. I looked back at her, then at Yorick, who was just walking off stage. She nodded and turned around, silently shuffling through the crowds and heading towards the clubhouse. Matt stuck close to my left, and Ruva filled in on my right as we continued towards Dragon's Claw.

"…What the heck?!" Ruva quietly screamed.

"Good question," I mumbled back. "This can't possibly be legal."

"How can it be?! We came here assuming we'd be out in two weeks!"

"We did. Now he has our pokemon, the camp and the surrounding mountains on lockdown, and we have no clue how long we'll be here or what he intends to do. …Worst case scenario."

The people ahead of us shuffled under the awning of the mess hall, and through the double doors of the faux-log building. The interior of Dragon's Claw immediately opened into the dining room; a huge, high-ceiling room with seven massive, wooden round tables, labeled by cabin with the standard type-symbol and corresponding color. In the back left corner was a hall that lead to the bathrooms, as well as a back exit.

"What's this whole talk of 'Team Gamma?'" Matt asked. "Does it have anything to do with Siphon?"

"Siphon was all about controlling what people can know," Ruva chimed in.

"And therefore controlling people, ruling with an iron fist," I grumbled. "But this whole 'Gamma' shtick seems quite the opposite; no government at all."

On the table closest to the door, a small sign was in the center. It was simple white flame with a red background; Fire cabin's table. Three chairs were open directly in front of us, so I took the middle one and sat down. Matt and Ruva sat down on either side of me.

"Which is just a terrible idea!" Ruva turned towards us. "Our National Parliament ain't perfect but we can't get just rid of it! Who's gonna run the police? The .O.? Heck, what about those Valkyries?! They're the ones who beat Siphon after all!"

"I think we could use one of those guys here," Matt leaned back in his chair.

"I'm with you on that one," my eyes fell to the middle of the table as a breath left my lungs. "We really could use one of them…"

"But it doesn't look like we're gettin' help anytime soon," Ruva said.

"Right," I sat back up. "So we look into this on our own. Emma's probably finishing up with Yorick by now, so I'm gonna meet her at the lake."

"Alright, I'm goin' back Fairy's table," Ruva stood. "I'll be there in a bit."

"I'll see ya there," Matt added.

I nodded and stood from my chair, turning around. The last of the masses were flowing into the building from the main doors. I ignored them, sliding past as I started out.

* * *

Wet sand crunched under my feet as I took a few more steps, before I turned towards the lake and sat down. Opposite of the pond was Dragon's Claw, and a path lead down to a small pier floating on the glassy-still water. I looked over my shoulder and into the valley below, where two salamences were squaring off in a battle ring, a camp-staff trainer behind each. One of the dragon pokemon wore a blue wristlet on its front right leg, the other wore a green one on its front left.

The trainer behind the blue-banded salamence pointed at his opponent, and his dragon pokemon lunged forward, but the green banded salamence juked right on-command to dodge its opponent. As green-band slid to a stop, its claws channeled a glowing indigo ether, and it lunged forward again, landing a slash on blue-band's side. The blue-banded salamence snarled as it stumbled back, only to turn and fire a purple beam back at its green banded adversary.

More footsteps crunched in the wet sand behind me. I turned back around, seeing Emma walking up the shore and towards me. She had a navy sweater on, with dark wash jeans and grey fur boots. Her long, brown hair was straightened, and her round hazel eyes were calmly scanning the lake on her left. A small, well-kept hand bushed her hair out of her ovular face, the nostrils on her small nose flaring slightly as she inhaled. Emma always wore makeup, but it was somewhat heavier today; eyeshadow, contouring and all.

"Pardon my French, but what the fuck was that?" I asked.

"To be true…" Emma sighed, stopping next to me and sitting in the sand. "I can't say I didn't see this comin'."

"Well, what did he say?"

"He said this is the way to make things-"

"Yeah, yeah, world peace or whatever," I waived it off. "What is he going to do _here_? To _us_?"

"He… He promised he wasn't gonna hurt no one. He just said he'll 'help us along' in joinin'."

"…What the fuck does that mean?"

"I don't know," she shrugged and shook her head. "But he promised me he wasn't gonna hurt no one."

"Do you trust him?"

"…Well, yeah," she looked to the lake, playing with her hair again.

I exhaled, placing my thumb and index finger on the bridge of my nose. I closed my eyes.

"…Alright then," I moved my hand and looked up again. "Was there anything else he said?"

"Nope, but he gave me one of 'em radios the workers use."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a walkie-talkie. Small enough to fit comfortably in her hand. All black, with a red button on the side, and a small antenna sticking out of the top.

"He said I'd know what he's doin' this way," she added.

"…Huh. Well, that's interesting. Do you think he's-"

"Hey! Where's Ruva?" a voice shouted from across the lake.

We looked to the other side of the water. Matt was standing on the end of the pier, his hands cupping his mouth. I waived him over, and we watched him turn back, round the shore and jog to our position.

"Where'd you see her last?" Emma called.

"She was with her cabin a few minutes ago," I said.

"Yeah, she was with us," Matt stopped next to Emma. "Went to the bathroom and didn't come back. I thought she was here by now."

"I see… We better check Fairy cabin. Maybe she met someone else there."

Emma and I stood up. As Emma started around Matt, I took one last glance behind me to see the salamence duel reach an end; the green band salamence had pinned its blue band counterpart to the ground, with a front foot on its opponent's neck.

Matt and I followed Emma around the lake, the sand underneath us turning to blacktop again as we started towards the central courtyard. Campers were trickling out of Dragon's Claw, quietly whispering in groups of three or four, their eyes scanning the area before each sentence.

"…Why would Yorick tell us now?" Matt whispered to me. "Why at the end of the trip?"

"I'm not sure," I whispered back. "But one thing's for sure, I won't be joining this, 'Team Gamma' or whatever he calls it."

"Team Gamma, you're right," Emma glanced back at us.

"Right," I nodded. "We need to figure out what his plans are. But that probably won't be easy, especially with those salamences around…"

"Yeah, those things look pretty mean," Matt glanced up.

"They are; trust me."

We passed the bell in the center, and walked straight to Fairy cabin's front door. Matt and I stopped next to the two-story building, glancing around at the identical cabins next to it, while Emma didn't slow down at all, going straight inside without us.

"Where could Ruva have gone…" I turned around, facing the bell in the middle of the camp.

"It's weird for her to go off like that," Matt mumbled. "Heck, it's hard enough to get her and Emma apart for even a minute."

"You're right about that much," I blinked. "But who knows. Maybe she just had to make a call to her family, let them know of her 'extended visit' or something."

Matt nodded, following my eyes to the bell in the center of the courtyard. The camp staff were moving the speakers back towards the staff building. Yorick had returned to the stage to direct his men; a black, fingerless glove was on his hand, with a sharply stylized, neon-green "G" plainly visible on its back.

"No sign 'a her," Emma stepped back out, wiping her brow. "Where else could she gone?"

"Blake said she might have gone to give her family a heads-up," Matt answered.

"Don't sound like her, but maybe."

"So what do we do?"

"…Maybe we just wait," I said. "I see no other course of action."

"I guess," Emma replied. "What else was on the plan?"

"Free time until lunch, then some activity before dinner, I think," Matt turned to her. "That's what the schedule said."

"Then let's go back to the lake," she rubbed her forehead with two fingers. "I need a quick dip."

* * *

The crowd shuffled out of the mess hall, dragging me with them. The sun was inching closer to the mountains by now, the skies dark red and growing darker. I glanced behind me, at the clock above the door-frame: "6:31 P.M. March 23, 0215."

I shuffled out of the crowd towards the right, and turned, scanning the masses. Matt and Emma walked out of the door side by side, quietly chatting. When they looked at me I waived them over, and they silently came to my side as we ducked behind the building.

"Did you see Ruva at all?" I turned to face them.

"Naw," Emma answered.

"Me neither," Matt followed.

"Same here," I scratched my head. "Any other ideas?"

"…Maybe she went to Blissey's Clinic?" Matt asked. "I think we should check there."

"Good idea. Let's go."

I walked right between them, and started for the path on the other side of the courtyard. Campers were dispersing for their respective cabins, in small groups of three or four. From behind the clubhouse on our left, another formation of salamences took off and turned, screeching overhead at low altitude. The wind nearly knocked Matt over, who kept his head down. I followed suit, my eyes stuck to the asphalt beneath our feet. Emma watched the dragon pokemon round the mountain in the distance, taking a breath as she looked ahead.

Our path curved right for the clinic, but another continued to the left as a dirt hiking trail. I stuck to the blacktop, following the path straight to the clinic's double doors and walking straight in, with Emma and Matt at either side. Inside was a small lobby, with a few couches, chairs, coffee tables, and a front desk. The walls and ceiling were faux logs, like the rest of the buildings. A woman in a staff uniform, brown hair in a bun and wide-rimmed glasses, was at a computer behind the desk. I walked straight up to the counter, and resting my arms on the granite. She didn't look up.

"Excuse me, we were looking for our friend, Ruva Alfaro," I said. "We haven't seen her at all day. Has she been here by chance?"

"Ruva Alfaro, you say?" she still didn't look up, only typed more at her computer. "She… has, actually. She came for a prescription refill, but there was some kind of mix up, so she is sorting that out with Yorick in private."

Emma blinked, and furrowed her brows. "Ruva? But she-"

I looked behind me and glared at Emma. She only stared back, her eyes widening slightly as she went silent. I held my gaze for a moment, then slowly turned back to the desk.

"Is, there a problem?" the secretary looked up at last.

"…No, we were just, wondering where she was," I answered. "…Thank you for your time."

I turned around and started out of the clinic. Emma and Matt stood where they were, taking a quiet breath and glancing at each other, before slowly following me out.

The clinic's doors opened with a shove, and cool rush of air told me the temperature was dropping. I marched straight ahead, passing the asphalt and continuing along the dirt. As I started down the hiking trail I glanced over my shoulder; Emma and Matt were right behind me, and we were definitely out of earshot. I slowed my pace, before stopping completely and turning around.

"Blake, that makes no sense!" Emma shouted. "Ruva don't have no prescription!"

"I know," I answered flatly. "Which means I have a guess on where she really is."

"…And where's that?"

"…Wherever they go to be, 'helped along.'"

Emma blinked, and looked to the ground at my feet. A breeze rolled from over the mountain, tossing her hair slightly.

"…'Helped along?'" Matt asked. "What's that mean?"

"I'm still not sure," I answered. "But it's what Yorick said to Emma about joining Team Gamma; he'll 'help us along,' in recruitment."

"…So, he's talking to Ruva, or…"

"Heh, heh… if only we were all so naïve. The secretary either lied or was lied to on Ruva's whereabouts; Yorick is hiding something. And given his use of the word 'Team' during announcements, we're probably looking at some form of physical, mental, or emotional abuse, all things we saw Siphon do."

"But he won't do that," Emma looked up. "He promised me he won't hurt no one."

"…I suppose we'll find out soon enough," I sighed. "I'm going back to my cabin. Gonna take a quiet minute to think."

"You feeling alright, Blake?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just… wanna try piecing this together on my own."

"We'll follow you there."

"Thanks," I started back up the trail. Matt stuck right behind me, while Emma stood where she was for an extra moment before following us up the hill.

* * *

"What time is it Matt?" I asked as we slowed down, stopping in front of Fire cabin's door.

"6:40-ish," Matt answered.

"Camp Council's in 20 minutes," Emma added.

"Bet he's gonna tell us more about how great Gamma is," I grumbled. "No more talks on training pokemon. …What are your plans?"

"Just hang out with whoever's there," Matt said.

"I'll be there in 15," I nodded. "Stay safe, both of you."

I turned and walked through Fire cabin's open doorway. Looking behind me, I watched Matt and Emma turn and stroll towards the clubhouse, starting a quiet conversation.

"Howdy there, Blake!" Noah's voice shouted.

I stopped and snapped a gaze to my right. Noah was the only other person in the room, sitting in the brown upholstery chair by the window. He was wearing sweatpants and a dry-fit tee shirt, both black with neon green details. His long, black hair had bits of dirt scattered throughout, and his brown-speckled eyes were locked on mine, slightly wide, slightly… unfocused.

"…Hey, Noah," I said quietly. "What have you been-"

"You gotta minute Blake?!" he sprung to his feet. "I have to tell you about something!"

Noah marched around the table in the middle of the room, stopping right next to the doorframe and directly in front of me. I took half a step backwards; his stare remained locked on mine, a reptilian smile on his face.

"…Are you okay, Noah?" I asked. "You seem a little… off."

"Me? Oh I'm fine! Great! Awesome! And how are you? Cause I got something that'll make your day!"

"And, what's that?" I turned, taking one quiet step towards the stairwell on the other side of the room, then another.

"I'll tell ya!" Noah stayed right by my shoulder, walking with me towards the stairs. "Okay, so Yorick had mentioned that whole Team Gamma thing before right? Well he and I were talking about it around lunchtime, and let me tell ya something, he's got it all figured out!"

"Does he now…"

"He really does! Parliament's just gonna sit on their butts and take our cash while we get screwed over! We're not getting laws we want, so we gotta get rid of them completely!"

"Uh-huh…"

"He was showed me just how bad Parlaiment really is! They're so bad, they couldn't get rid of Team Siphon for years! Like, how does it take so long to beat those guys?!"

"…Yorick knows nothing about Siphon, Noah," I glanced at him, turning towards the right as I approached the stairwell.

"I thought that too, but he showed me wrong! They were around for over 30 years, and the politicians, the police, heck! Not even the Valkyries were doing ANYTHING against-"

My elbow shot back into Noah's gut. Before he could double over I turned and shoved him into the wall, pinning his neck to the logs with my wrist. Noah gasped for a breath, staring at me with eyes as wide as could be.

" _Yorick,_ doesn't know _shit,_ about _Siphon,_ " I growled through my teeth. "And if he thinks his little club is gonna fix Orryn's problems… he's got something else coming."

I dropped my arm and turned around, letting Noah slump into the corner. I quietly started up the stairs and glanced over my shoulder; my cabin leader had curled into a ball, sobbing slightly.

* * *

The bedroom was quiet; no one in their beds, backpacks on the floor, a reddish light pouring in from the windows and scarcely illuminating the room. In the farthest corner was my bed, my dark-blue duffel bag sitting at the foot. With a few silent steps I approached, turning and sitting down on my mattress; it was kinda stiff, but not unbearable. A deep breath filled my lungs, and I held it for a moment before it escape through my nose.

I reached down, putting a hand in my bag and searching through it. Once I had a grip on a spiral binding, I pulled out my notebook and flipped it open before glancing down. It had opened straight to an entry I had made two weeks ago:

"Mission Introduction. March 9th, 0215.

Classification: Reconnaissance.

Location: Camp Crauss Trainer's Retreat.

Time Frame: March 9 – March 23, 0215.

Prime Directives:

1) Enter camp as a student, observe Yorick's actions.

2) Search for signs of criminal activity, shut down as necessary.

3) Remain undercover at all costs."

I read the last three lines again, blinking once, twice. I reached for my neck and touched a piece of string, which I grabbed and pulled up. A small, black stone emerged from underneath my shirt, and it rose completely over my head as I collected the thread in my palms, then set it down on the paper in my lap. The yellow circle was facing upwards, highlighted by the fading sunlight.

"…If Yorick thinks he's starting the next Siphon, he's got something else coming," I mumbled. "And that something is me."


	5. Chapter 4: Personal Relations

Chapter 4: Personal Relations _(Emma)_

"Matt?" I looked at him as we passed the bell in the middle of the court. "Do you think it's true? Do you think somethin' bad… happened to Ruva?"

"I don't know," Matt blinked. "I don't know a whole lot about what's happening here. But it'll all be okay in the end, I promise."

"Ok… But, what do we do now?"

"…Well, I bet you could ask Yorick what's going on," Matt shrugged. "We still got 20 minutes before Camp Council."

I found a big breath and looked up. The sky was all pink, more reddish by the sun, and more purple the other way.

"…Is it enough time?" I asked and looked back at Matt. "He's really busy runnin' this place. And maybe it's just somethin' stupid and we're all freakin' out for no reason."

"If it is something small, then there's no harm asking," Matt shrugged.

"Oh…"

"He trusts you, Emma. He won't mind."

I nodded a bit. Matt and I stepped off the grass and back onto the blacktop. Some other campers came outta their cabins and trickled towards the clubhouse, down the small hill ahead.

"Hey, do you think…" I made another breath, and blinked once. "What if Blake's bein' a little… too, suspicious?"

"Too suspicious?" Matt looked up.

"Yeah, like, what's the big deal if he calls it 'Team' Gamma? Maybe he just thought there was a ring to it."

"You're right, I think there is a ring to it," Matt nodded. "But calling anything 'Team' will make people think of Siphon, just because they were around for so long. And Yorick knows that, so he had to choose that name on purpose."

"I mean… I guess. Maybe he just wants to get Siphon out of people's heads with something better, I dunno."

We walked under the door cover of the clubhouse, slowin' down to stop. It was only 'bout as big as one of 'em cabins, made of fake wood. Some guys were standin' by the big front doors, just chattin', and a few more came over from the courtyard behind us.

"Well, I doubt he'd tell _me_ why," Matt said. "But I bet he'd tell you, if you asked."

"…Guess you're right," I breathed deep, and started for the door.

"I'll see you inside," Matt turned to the other guys and walked into the group. They called out his name and let him in with a laugh. I grabbed the door grip and opened it, steppin' in.

* * *

The inside of the clubhouse was empty. It was dark-lit, with a few spotlights on the stage in middle. Big stairs went down to it, and we'd sit on those stairs when Yorick was giving his speeches. There's bathrooms on either sides – one for gals and one for guys – and they both had backdoors that lead outside. I went down the stage and climbed up, creepin' up on the side and peekin' 'round the corner to see backstage.

My heart jumped. Yorick had his back to me, talking soft to two of his people, all of them in their uniforms. I made a soft step out. Then another towards him.

"Hey Yorick," I mumbled, quieter than I meant to.

He looked back at me, and smiled. My heart skipped again. He raised a hand and waived his people of, who walked out onto the stage and away from us.

"Good evening, Ms. Turner," he said back as he turned to face me.

I smiled back, as I walked all the way up to him. He just looked at me with that warmest grin. His head turned slightly.

"Hey- uhhh…" I shook my head. "Do you know where Ruva is? I ain't seen her since announcements this morning."

"Ahh, Ruva," his smile dropped a bit. "She was complaining of some illness this morning; headaches, stomach cramps, nausea. The doctors suspect a simple food poisoning, so she's been getting rest in the lower levels of the staff building. She'll be back with you by tomorrow morning, if she's feeling better, of course."

"Oh," I said, switchin' hands in my hair. "Is she okay? Can I see her?"

"…The lower levels are strictly reserved for camp staff," Yorick's grin fell flat. "You know that I trust you, Emma. But if I let you in, it would only be fair to let everyone in, and I simply can't do that."

"I, understand…"

"But I assure you, Ruva is just fine," he put his hand on my right shoulder. "She seemed almost one-hundred percent when I checked in on her after dinner."

"Ya saw her?"

"I, did," Yorick blinked. "She is your best friend, after all, and I wanted to ensure her recovery personally."

"Awwww," I couldn't help a little smile, puttin' my hand on his. "Thanks, Yorick."

"Of course, Emma," he grinned a bit again. His deep, brown eyes were still on mine, and his big, strong hand rubbed my shoulder just a bit…

"Hey, Yorick?" I shook my head again and my smile went away. "The person at the clinic said Ruva was sortin' out a prescription. But she don't have a prescription."

"Is that what they said?" Yorick turned his head. "There must be an error in our database. I will have to correct that later."

"Oh, that makes sense," I rubbed the back of my neck. "Now that I think 'bout it."

"Are you still worried about her, Emma?"

"…Well," I looked at the ground. It was wood, painted black, nails holdin' it together painted with it.

"Look, I know seems a little off," Yorick's other hand came onto my other shoulder. "But I made a promise; no one is going to get hurt. And I'll keep that promise to you, but you made a promise to me, too. And I need you to keep it."

I blinked, and looked back up. Yorick's eyes were still on me. His lips were flat along his face, and his head tilted down just a bit.

"…I will," I nodded. "I'll join Gamma for you."

"You won't regret it, Emma," Yorick grinned again. "Trust me."

"I do," I said as I let a breath out. My hand came outta my hair, and it slowly went to Yorick's shoulder, almost by itself. One of Yorick's hands slid from my shoulder to my back, and he nudged me closer without even pullin'. The smile on his face dropped as he leaned in, his forehead gently touchin' mine. I closed my eyes. His breath was warm on my cheeks, and I couldn't help but let out another breath; shaky. Yorick's head turned just a bit, I turned mine the other way to-

"Yorick!" A voice called from the stage.

I jumped a stepped back, but Yorick pulled me in close, and my cheek pressed against his firm chest. Another shaky breath passed over my lips.

"You're on in ten minutes!" the voice called again.

"We shall continue where we left off, tomorrow," he whispered into my ear.

"Mmmmmm," I put my arms around him and held him tight, closin' my eyes again. When I felt him step back I looked up; Yorick was half-smilin' at me as he turned and walked onto the stage.

* * *

"That is all for camp council today," Yorick's voice boomed from the clubhouse stage. "You are dismissed for the evening."

Other campers started gettin' up and walkin' to the door. They started gettin' in between me and Yorick, his eyes watchin' the crowd, his hands behind his back, his chest movin' up and down with each breath…

I shook my head again and got to my feet. Swingin' a right and goin' up the stairs, I followed the other campers to the doors, which were propped open. Another rush 'a warm air touched my face as I stepped outside, and the stars were shinin' bright in the night sky.

"Gorgeous…" I mumbled quietly.

"Emma!" Blake's voice snapped at me.

I shook my head and looked right. Blake was walkin' next to me, starin' at me keenly.

"Sorry, what?" I asked with a smile.

"Any, sign, of Ruva?" he spoke slow.

"…Nope," I shrugged.

"…Alright," Blake just sighed and looked off. "I'll check with Matt."

"Alrighty," I smiled again.

Blake started scufflin' through the people, gettin' ahead 'a me. I looked back up at the stars, shimmerin' and sparklin' like little diamonds in the sky. I closed my eyes and made a deep breath; I could still feel his arms 'round me…


	6. Chapter 5: New Leaf

Chapter 5: New Leaf _(Blake)_

"Blake?" Matt's voice called as a hand shook my shoulder. "We're about to go."

I opened my eyes. Matt was standing next to my bed, and his hand returned to his side. I sat up and glanced around; sunlight was pouring in from the windows. The other campers were standing next to their beds, some stretching their arms, others rubbing their eyes still. The clock above the doorway read, "7:28 A.M. March 24th, 0215." Noah stood at the door; he glanced back at me before quickly stepping out of the room.

"Thanks," I tossed my sheets off and swung my legs aside.

"No problem," Matt turned and went back towards his bed. I looked down at the foot of my own bed, then reached into my bag and grabbed my notebook again, the pencil wedged into the spiral binding. Opening the notebook to the next clean page, I took out the pencil and scribbled in a note:

"Day 15. March 24th, 0215.

Our visit at Camp Crauss has been 'extended,' as Yorick puts it. I still don't know the details on what he's planning, but at least I know when it's happening; right now.

There might be some leads on what he's up to, though. After dinner last night, I returned to my cabin and found Noah acting strangely; his behaviorisms off, rambling about how great Team Gamma is. Perhaps he was simply converted by Yorick's words – he didn't get famous for his battle skills alone – but the timing of this conversion is certainly suspect.

I will make no attempt at escape; even if I could, I don't know how Yorick would react to one of his campers going missing. No means of calling for backup and limited options in pokemon means I can not make a direct assassination attempt either. My only option is to blend in, and keep an eye out for any more suspicious behavior. If Yorick is starting the next Siphon, I will take him out; the question then becomes how…"

I closed my notebook and looked up. The last of my cabin-mates walked out of the room. I tucked my pencil back into the binding, put my notebook away, grabbed my shirt from my bed and started out.

* * *

The masses around me filled through Dragon Claw's double doors, bumping into my shoulders slightly. Camp staff rolled out of the doors to the kitchen, trays full of pancakes and bacon strips. I kept my eyes down as the crowd finally dispersed, sitting down at the seven huge round tables in the mess hall. Nearest to the door was Fire cabin's table, where Matt was already sitting in one of the closer chairs.

I pulled out a chair next to him and sat down. Matt grabbed a pitcher of water and two glasses from the middle of the table, poured into one of them carefully, and set it down in front of me before pouring another for himself.

"Man, I wonder what's going on outside the camp," Matt put the pitcher back in the middle of the table.

"My guess?" I replied. "Orryn Police has Route 17 locked down, perhaps trying to communicate with Yorick; see if he wants a ransom or something."

A tray of pancakes and bacon was dropped off at our table, and the server continued towards Rock cabin's. I grabbed my fork and knife, scooped a pancake off of the tray, set it on my plate, cut up a small piece and took a bite. It was sweeter than sugar and fluffy as a cloud; at least the food was good.

"I don't think he wants a ransom," Matt said as he took another piece of bacon from the tray, taking a bite from one of its ends.

My eyes wandered as I cut up another bite. Campers sat shoulder-to-shoulder at the tables for each cabin; Water, Grass, Bug…

Emma was sitting at Fairy cabin's table, at the other end of the hall. Ruva was next to her, chatting as usual. My hands stopped over the plate.

"…I don't think so either," I answered.

Ruva was wearing one of her usual outfits; a red, short sleeve tee and what looked like a flannel shirt around her waist, though it was hard to tell from above the table. She was vividly rambling to her best friend, who was directly facing the plate in front of her. Emma, on the other hand, was wearing a light grey, unmarked sweatshirt, her hair was a complete mess, and I could see the bags under her eyes from across the room; she must be exhausted.

Emma's eyes lazily scanned the room, before stopping on mine and staying there. I nodded towards my right, to the lake again. She only nodded back, and looked down at her silverware.

"Is that Ruva?" Matt asked.

"It is," I answered. "I'm gonna meet with Emma by the lake."

"Alright. I'll be around."

I promptly dropped my utensils onto the plate, stood and walked out of the building.

* * *

A slight breeze picked up from behind me, disturbing the water in front of my feet. The skies above were cloudy, and the air was a bit warmer than usual. Another formation of salamences darted over Dragon's Claw, scanning the camp below them with their black slitted eyes.

The doors of the mess hall opened, and campers began filing out of the building. Most of them went towards the clubhouse to wait for announcements. One, however, broke off from the pack and started down the hill, coming towards me. It was Emma, wearing a light grey sweatshirt, black leggings, and the same fur boots as yesterday, which dragged along the sand beneath her feet. The bags under her eyes were painfully obvious, and her eyelids looked heavy, taking another slow blink as she shuffled up to me and sat down on the shore.

"…So Ruva's back." I started.

"Yeah," she replied, blinking hard and nodding.

My eyes turned to the lake. The waters by the pier looked grey, reflecting the clouds overhead.

"…And…" I looked back at her.

"It's awful!" Emma jumped slightly. "She came back to the cabin somewhere 'round 3 AM, and must 've been throwing herself around in her bed, crying for the whole night! And this morning all she wants to talk about is how great Team Gamma is, and how it all makes sense when Yorick says it, and… _*sniff*_ and…"

She put her face in her knees and wailed, tears falling to the ground. I looked back down at the still, glassy water in front of me. My reflection was clear as a mirror on the surface.

"…So, all of a sudden, Ruva's rambling about how great Gamma is…" I said quietly. "Noah was like this, too."

Emma nodded slightly, heaving in an unrestrained sob. Her head remained in her knees.

"…And it sounds to me like she had some kind of night seizure. Bad enough to keep you awake…"

She only sobbed again.

"…He's brainwashing people," I looked up slightly. "Yorick, is starting the next Siphon."

"No, he's-" she sobbed, raising her head at last. "It ain't like that."

"I think it is," I answered flatly. "He's starting to build an army by brainwashing capable trainers to his cause, and is going to use that army to destroy Orryn's government and create an anarc-"

"It ain't like that!" she snapped to me, tears in her eyes. "He promised me he won't hurt no one!"

"Did it occur to you that he _lied?_ " I glared right back. "Yorick is using you, Emma. He's using your trust to keep us all in the dark!"

"Oh really now?!" she shot to her feet. "And just what-do-ya plan to do there, _Blake?!_ "

"I plan, to get to the bottom of this," I slowly stood up, my glare still locked onto her tear-filled eyes. "And I suggest you and your little fan-crush stay _out of my way._ "

"It's not- it ain't-" Emma threw her hands up. "FINE! Get to the bottom of this! Just don't get _brainwashed_ in the middle 'a it!"

She turned and stomped off, tears streaming down her face and into the sand. I watched her storm up the hill towards the central courtyard, then took a deep breath, and took a few steps back up the shore.

* * *

"Blake!" Matt's voice called. I stopped in Fire cabin's doorway and looked over my shoulder; Matt was jogging towards me from the crowd campers dispersing from the clubhouse.

"What's up," I turned around.

"Hey, I spotted Emma on her way back from the lake," Matt stopped in front of me. "She was super upset, what's wrong?"

I looked over him, at the other campers; no one was close by. I took another glance at Fire cabin's interior, making sure that it was empty, before looking back at Matt and nodding inside. He nodded back, and we quietly walked into our cabin.

"…Everything's wrong, Matt," I said quietly. "Yorick is starting the next Siphon."

"Yorick is-" Matt blinked. "What? How do you know?"

"From what Emma said, I'm convinced Yorick brainwashed Ruva. All of a sudden she's rambling about how great Team Gamma is to anyone who will hear. Between that and, me kinda telling her off when she didn't believe it, it's no wonder Emma's upset."

We walked to the back of the room, and started up the stairs. The wood underneath our feet creaked with each step.

"…Brainwashing?" Matt leaned in and whispered. "Like in the movies? Is that even possible?"

"It is, unfortunately. Towards the end of their days, Team Siphon invested heavily into creating a mind-control device, using artificially generated psychic energy to alter thought patterns of its victims. I wouldn't be surprised if Yorick acquired at least one of those devices somehow…"

"Siphon put money into mind-control? I never heard about that."

"Well, Professor Redwood has, close friends in the police. I heard of it through him."

I reached the top of the stairs and turned into the only hall, leading towards the sleeping quarters.

"Huh," Matt stayed by my side. "…hasn't, Noah been acting a little weird lately?"

"Yeah. I think he's been brainwashed too. His behavior seems pretty similar to what Emma described in Ruva…"

"Like they went through the same thing. Maybe he's keeping a device hidden in the staff building's lower levels; he won't let campers go down there…"

"I find that likely. Good thinking, Matt."

"Thanks."

At the end of the hall was a doorway on the left. We walked through that doorway and into the bedrooms, which were still empty.

"Hey, I think I should get back out there," Matt stopped in the door. "Maybe keep an eye out for more people acting weird."

"Good call," I strolled to my bed in the far corner and sat at it's end. "I'm gonna write another journal real quick before I join you."

"Sounds good," he turned and started out the room.

"And Matt?" I called.

"Yeah?" he looked over his shoulder, straight at me.

"…If you see Emma before I do, just… tell her I apologize."

Matt nodded and rounded the corner, starting back for the stairs. I reached back into my bag, grabbed my notebook and flipped it open to the entry I had made earlier this morning. I only used about half of the page, so I took the pencil out of the binding, drew a line beneath the last entry and started writing underneath:

"Suspicions confirmed. Ruva's now behaving very similarly to Noah; I'm convinced they've both been brainwashed, perhaps by the Siphon device. Colin had a better understanding of the device than me, he could probably confirm if he were here now…

Regardless, my objective now moves to eliminating Yorick. Such a task will not be easy. Even if I can get past his staff and salamences in a direct assassination, the death of one of Orryn's most popular names will have great consequences, if there's even the slightest suspicion of foul play. Therefore, my means need to be as indirect as possible, almost as if it-"

"…wasn't, me, at all," I mumbled to myself, a slight grin appearing on my face. I quickly erased the last line, brushed off the eraser shavings, and started a new paragraph:

"Potential course of action will be outlined here. Details to follow…"

* * *

 _(Emma)_

"Emma?" Lucy's voice said quiet as a hand went on my shoulder. "Do ya wanna grab some lunch with the rest of us?"

I took my head outta my pillow. It was soaked all the way through now. Lucy was standin' next to my bed, wearin' Donna's leather jacket under a white tank-top, a pair 'a jeans, and black boots. Up by the door was a clock, which said, "11:59 A.M." I looked around; the other 20-some beds were empty, sheets all messed up, clothes and makeup all over 'em. Just me and Lucy here.

"Sure," I couldn't help one last sob as I wiped my cheeks clear 'a tears. "Just, gimme a sec."

"Of course, of course," Lucy nodded, her long blonde hair shakin' with her. "And hey, don't worry about him. He's just an asshole who's pissed that he's-"

"I ain't mad at Blake, Lucy," I took a breath, wipin' my cheeks again. "Really, it's just Ruva."

"…Oh…"

I finally sat up, movin' my legs to the side and shiftin' the sheets a bit. I looked down; at least my sweatshirt was clean 'a tears.

"It's just," I said. "Between her and Yorick, I… I dunno what to do."

"We don't have to do anythin' right now," she said. "Let's just get some grub. Ya hardly ate at breakfast."

I nodded and stood up. My legs felt like wet noodles and I could barely keep my eyes open. I tried to shake it off as Lucy walked outta Fairy cabin's bedroom, and I followed her 'round the corner.

"Hey, Emma," another gal with short, red hair was right 'round the bend, leanin' on the wall. She had a longer green skirt and matching long-sleeve top, and there were a few freckles on her rounded face, her blue eyes right on me.

"Oh, hey Lindsey," I kept walkin'. She turned and stuck next to me. Lucy kept goin' and rounded the next bend, startin' down the stairs.

"I heard about Ruva," she said. "Tina's like this too… it totally sucks."

Lindsey and I followed Lucy down the stairs, who swung a left and started for the door. I caught peeks 'a other campers headin' outta their cabins from the windows, looks like they were startin' back towards Dragon's Claw.

"It's like," I took a big breath. "She always had her things to ramble about, but before she was good with it. Now it's all Team Gamma, all the time, and I can't keep up."

"My gosh, Tina's literally the same," Lindsey hung her head. "She used to be so quiet, easygoin'. And now she's just talkin' my ear off."

"That's the words," I nodded. "Talkin' my ear off."

We got to the bottom 'a the stairs and swung left, startin' for the door. Two gals were sittin' on the couch in the middle, another was doin' her makeup at the vanity by the side.

"I just hope this won't last forever," Lindsey said. "Cause I can't keep up with this."

"Me neither," I answered as we stepped out, into the sun. "She's my best friend, don't think me wrong, but if this is how she's gonna be-"

"Emma!" Ruva popped out next to me. Lindsey and I jumped a bit and looked to our right; Ruva's hair was a bit messy, and her eyes were big, almost like they weren't lookin' right at me.

"Oh… hey Ruva," I blinked hard again, and got walkin' toward Dragon's Claw.

"So when we goin' out?" she bounced.

"Goin' out, where Ruva?" Lindsey asked.

"Goin' out into the world!" she shouted. "Fighting and beating that no-good government!"

"Right, right," I nodded, lookin' at the blacktop under me.

"We should take Capitol City right now! And Turquoise! And Ironport!"

"Yeah, sounds great. Really…"

"How 'bout we get our pokemon back? We gotta…"

People started packin' close as we shuffled into the mess hall. Ruva just kept talkin' over the noise, and Lindsey stayed close as we walked past Bug cabin's table and stopped at Fairy's. Lucy was already sittin' next to three empty chairs, and we all sat down.

"…And lemme tell ya," Ruva turned towards me again. "First cop I see out there is gonna get it good!"

"Ruva, we can't just attack the police," Lindsey leaned over.

"Sure we can! They got it comin'! Just you see when…"

One of the server people dropped sandwiches at our table. I grabbed the closest one; white bread, lettuce, tomato, turkey. I nibbled at the crust and looked up, past Lindsey and Ruva's conversation and at Fire cabin's table.

Blake was lookin' right at me, leanin' back in his chair, arms crossed. Matt was in one of the chairs next to him, chattin' with the other Fire cabin boys, and the other chair next to Blake was empty. I kept lookin' at Blake for a moment, then glanced at Ruva quick and looked back at him. He just watched for another sec, 'fore puttin' one hand by his mouth.

"Ruva!" Blake's voice rang over the other people's chatter.

Ruva stopped talkin' and looked to Fire's table. Blake waived her over.

"Come on!" Ruva said and jumped outta her chair.

"I'm gonna go to the gal's room quick, I'll be right there," I nodded.

"Okay!" she got outta the chairs and ran off. I looked back at Blake, and when he saw me again, I gave him a thumbs-up. He nodded and looked at Ruva, who rushed to the empty chair next to him and sat down. Matt turned to see Ruva.

"Do you want me to come?" Lindsey asked.

"Nah, it's okay," I got outta my chair, turned 'round and headed for the bathrooms on the other side 'a the mess hall.

* * *

 _(Blake)_

"Hey, Ruva," I said flatly as she stopped next to me. Matt turned himself towards her.

"Hey Blake! Hey Matt!" Ruva sat down in the empty chair with a beaming smile on her face. She put her hands on the table, and on her right hand was a black, fingerless glove, marked with sharply stylized, neon-green "G" on its back.

"Where have you been?" I asked.

"Just chattin' with Yorick," she chimed. "He told me all about this awesome thing called Team Gamma! He said a bit about it before!"

"Right, he did mention that earlier, at announcements and council. Anything in particular, pique your interest in Gamma?"

"Well, I didn't really like it at first, but then Yorick told me what it was really about! See, governments are well and good if people are perfect and nice, but they ain't, right?"

"That, they are not…" I leaned back, and crossed my arms again.

"So when people ain't nice, they mess other people over, right? No matter what they do at first, they end up puttin' others down to push themselves up! So the only way to do it is to get rid of 'em altogether!"

"Uh-huh…"

"So we should all get on board! Start kicking government butt!"

"Yeah… yeah, we'll get to that."

"Whelp, I'm gonna go to Fairy's table quick, be right back!"

Ruva shot out of her chair and ran back to Fairy cabin's table, the sleeves on her flannel shirt bouncing with her. Matt and I watched her sit down at the other end of the hall.

"Brainwashed," I said. "Clear as day."

"Wow…" Matt answered. "You really think so?"

"It's obvious; her entire thought process is different. She's behaving exactly like Noah was earlier… More than likely means they were put through the same process."

"Oh… This must be putting a lot of pressure on Emma, think I should talk to her?"

"Yeah, that'd be smart."

"Alright. I'll catch ya later."

"MmmHhmm."

Matt got up, pushed his chair in, and started for the far corner of the hall. I remained in my seat, watching him head for the bathrooms in the back. My eyes fell back to Ruva, who had returned to Fairy cabin's table, rambling to a red-headed girl next to her.

"…unfortunate," I mumbled to myself. "Now it's not a question of if, but when…"

* * *

 _(Emma)_

The water from the sink was cold, and I quickly rinsed my hands 'fore grabbin' a paper towel from the dispenser. I wiped my hands dry, then looked at myself in the mirror; my hair was still a knotty mess, and there were those little circles under my eyes. I tried to rub them away, no luck. With a big breath, I turned to the door and opened it, steppin' back outta the bathroom.

"Emma," Matt was waitin' in the side 'a the hall.

"Hey Matt," I let another big breath out. "Think we can get outside for a sec?"

"Yeah, let's go," he went off to my right and opened the back door. I followed him out, and we started strollin' back towards the cabins.

It was a sunny day, a bit warmer than this mornin', but not by a lot. No one else was around as Matt and I started getting' close to the middle courtyard.

"…Blake says he's sorry," Matt said kinda quietly.

"It's okay," I answered. "I ain't mad at him, it's just… it's all too much."

"Say that again," he sighed. "If you need to get anything off your chest, I'm always here, Emma."

"…As bad as I hate to, Matt," I closed my eyes. "I can't deal with Ruva like this."

"We saw her just a couple minutes ago, its exhausting. …But we're gonna find a way to bring her back to normal. There's just gotta be a way."

"…Okay," I looked ahead. "It's just, hard… and another thing ain't sittin right with me."

"What is it?"

I looked back, then side to side. Once I made sure nobody was near, I leaned in close to Matt.

"How, do I… still, like Yorick, even if he did this to my best friend?" I whispered.

Matt's head dropped just a bit as he looked at the blacktop path. He slowed down his walkin' a lot, and mine slowed with 'em.

"…Well," he muttered. "Maybe, just maybe… maybe you don't just _like_ him."

I stopped, right in front 'a the grass in the middle court. A little wind picked up, little goosebumps poppin' up on my arms under my sweatshirt sleeves.

"It's really- there's nothing wrong with it, at all," Matt said. "And it doesn't-"

"I know, I know, thanks," I rubbed my forehead and closed my eyes again. "You know what, I'm just, gonna go to my cabin."

"Are you sure? You can sit at Fire cabin's table if you're looking for a break."

"I'm sure, I'll see you later," I started walking to Fairy cabin.

"…Okay, if you're sure," Matt stayed where he was for another sec, then turned and strolled back to the front doors of Dragon's Claw.

* * *

Things were quiet at I crept down the sands by the lake, sittin' down again in the same spot I was at this mornin'. I took another big breath as I smoothed my long, white silk skirt and grey ruffled blouse, and looked up; the sky was black, and the only light was comin' from the stars, the sliver-moon, and the light posts from camp up the way. People started comin' outta the clubhouse, and at the edge 'a the crowd I spotted Ruva's curly brown hair, bouncin' 'round as she talked to another gal, who jumped just a bit with her.

"…man, Ruva," I muttered to myself. "What's got into ya…"

They got closer to the cabins, getting' to far for me to recognize anymore. The big group 'a campers started spreadin' out, goin' straight to their cabins; no one started comin' my way.

"…where is he," I let another big breath out. "Blake wasn't at dinner. …I, told Matt, tell Blake, meet here after Camp Council, where is he?"

I brushed a bit my straightened hair outta my eyes, rubbed the side 'a my head. It was throbbin' a bit; must be all these rants from Ruva, and Tina too, can't stand it no more.

"Dangit, where'd Matt say he was… he said, he was in his cabin still, takin' another sec…"

The light's from the clubhouse shut off part-way, leavin' some light on the buildings. The crowd was thinnin' more and more.

"…But I guess he ain't comin," I got to my feet again. "Hope he didn't-"

"Emma," a whisper behind me.

I jumped a bit and whipped 'round. Course it was Blake, climbin' over the shore and stoppin' just in front 'a me. He was in his jeans and a hoodie, and there was a bit 'a dirt on his shoes, like he'd been out in some mud.

"Where the heck was you?!" I whisper-shouted at him. "I thought you disappeared too!"

"I've been busy," he said flatly. "But first of all, I need to apologize, Emma. About this morning. What I said wasn't right, and it didn't do us any good."

"Nah, nah, don't apologize," I looked to the water next to me, which was still like normal. "I'm bugged about Ruva, that ain't your fault …"

"I know, but that doesn't mean we can't do something," Blake reached for his back pocket, and pulled out a little walky-talky. It was black, hard to see in the dark, and there was a little red button at the side, a tiny antenna sticking outta the top.

"Is that… one of the worker radios?!"

He nodded.

"Blake, what are ya doin'?!" I whisper-shouted again. "If they see you with that, you're a goner!"

"I'll be fine. Do you still have yours?"

"Uhhhh, yeah," I reached into my skirt pocket and grabbed the cold plastic radio, pullin' it out. "Haven't used it yet, though."

"That's fine, I just need it for a second."

"What for?"

"Let's just say, I borrowed this from that shed behind the staff building," he shrugged. "Problem is, it's not tapped into their network yet, so I can't hear what they're saying. So I'm gonna need yours to get in."

"Need, mine?" I blinked. "Won't Yorick know I got you in?"

"He won't know I'm in at all."

"Oh…" I looked at the walky-talky in my hand. There was a little speaker by the top 'a the thing, and two little slits closer to the bottom. Probably the microphone.

"Hey, I know Yorick matters to you," Blake dropped his tone. "But I spent all of thirty seconds talking to Ruva at lunch, and it was exhausting; we don't want her stuck like that. So, help me out here, and I'll find a way to get Ruva back to normal without ruining you and Yorick's… 'little thing.'"

I looked back up at Blake. One 'a his hands was still on his radio, the other was stretched out to me. His eyes were right on mine. His head dropped just a bit, like a little nod.

I glanced back at my radio, then steadily reached it out and put it in his hand. Blake nodded again, then spun it 'round so it's antenna was just touchin' his.

"How long will it take?" I whispered.

"Just a second," he looked down, pushin' the buttons on both 'a them. They started makin' static, then beeped kinda loudly once. Then again.

"Alright, that should do it," Blake handed the radio back to me. "Now we wait. They'll tip us off eventually."

"Just wait? Is that all we can do?"

"It's all I can do," Blake started 'round me and stopped at my side. "But you, if you were so inclined, could ask Yorick about Ruva's current condition. Perhaps get some intel, straight from the source."

He started walkin' up the sand again, leavin' me alone. I watched him stroll to the blacktop and up the hill, then looked down at the radio in my hand, which was exactly the same as before Blake borrowed it, far as I can tell. A big breath filled up my lungs, and I let it out as I walked away from the lake. I started across the grass behind the clubhouse, towards the staff building.

* * *

 _(Blake)_

"…Just closing up the clinic now, Yorick," the staff radio spoke again. "We'll be back at HQ in just a minute."

"Excellent work, Ross," Yorick answered from the device. "Wait for me inside for debrief."

My finger searched for the volume slider on the side of the radio, and I lowered it to mute as I put it in my hoodie pocket and started up the hill towards the central courtyard. The rest of the camp came into view, lit by glowing bright white lights from the lampposts circling the courtyard. Directly across the courtyard were all seven cabins; Water, Grass, Bug, Fairy, Fire, Rock, and Steel, from my left onward. Dragon's Claw was mostly abandoned, save for a few staff members wandering around in the mess hall, scanning the floor. The clinic and the staff building also seemed empty, and only three or four campers were still outside, who were filing into Steel, Fire, and Grass cabins. The kricketots chirped in the distance, the air was still.

"Trotsky!" Yorick's voice rang in my ears. "Shouldn't you be in your cabin?"

I froze in my tracks and glanced over my shoulder. Yorick was marching my way from the clubhouse, still in his camp-staff uniform. His brown eyes were firmly locked on mine, the slightest frown on his face as he slowed to a stop, just a few feet behind my back.

"I was on my way, actually," I turned to face him. "But I took the long route to enjoy the weather. Nice night, isn't it?"

"Hmm. …Suppose it is," he circled around me, steel-on-asphalt clicking with each step, stopping in between me and the central bell. "Yet you know it's almost curfew. Return to your cabin."

"Not to worry, I'm going straight there," I took half a step right and started towards Fire cabin, turning my gaze to the faux-log shelter ahead.

But Yorick placed a hand on my shoulder, a hand as cold as stone, and I froze in my tracks next to him. My eyes fell to the tarmac. He stared at the ground where I was moments ago.

"…Noah tells me that you, attacked him," Yorick spoke in monotone. "Do you have anything to say on the matter?"

I looked at him from the corner of my eye. He remained focused on the ground, his face completely blank, devoid of any sign of emotion.

"…I did apologize, and I will again," I said flatly. "He had made a comment on Team Siphon, which brought me back to my brother's passing a few weeks ago. …I acted up, and I am truly sorry."

"I see… And what of this on your brother? What happened to him?"

"…It was related to Siphon. That's all there is to say."

Yorick nodded ever so slightly. A cold breeze blew into my face, green, pointed leaves slid past me and fell out of sight.

"…My condolences," he spoke again. "…To lose your brother in such a way must be difficult to process. Surely you wouldn't want others to feel as you do, going through such a loss…"

"Trust me," I answered. "You don't know half the story."

"Yorick, come in Yorick," a voice spoke from his hip.

The camp leader took a step back, removing his hand from my shoulder and putting it on a radio at his hip. It came free with a plastic click, and his eyes turned to the device in his hand as he lowered the volume.

"Go ahead, Ross," Yorick answered.

I took half a step backwards, turning my eyes Yorick's radio. The volume was too low to make out anything intelligible, and he kept it close to his face, listening carefully.

"…She is? I will be there immediately," Yorick lowered the radio, hooking it to his belt again.

"And who is she?" my hands clasped behind my back.

"Not your concern," he growled. "What you should be concerned with, are those who are suffering at this moment, just like you. Suffering at the hands of corrupt people, from criminals on the streets to politicians in the Parlaiment. And ask yourself, 'should I sit idly by, or should I do something?'"

Yorick turned and started towards the staff building. I stood where I was, watching him march across the courtyard. He approached the double doors of his headquarters, opened one of the doors and stepped in. The lights in the wings of the building went completely dark.

"…Trust me," I said quietly. "I am doing something."

I started walking again, taking slow, meticulous steps as I began to cross the grass. The lights around me shut off with a loud click, leaving the camp in the dark.


	7. Chapter 6: A Beast and a Capture

Chapter 6: A Beast and a Capture _(Emma)_

Back sore. Throat itchy. Sheets under me damp, salty smell. I opened my eyes a little; bright white light was comin' in from the window, another cloudy mornin'. The blankets were messy by my feet, my blouse, skirt and underwear was all in a pile next to this queen-size bed, and I could barely see the top 'a Dragon's Claw from the window.

I took a breath and sat up, little pins pokin' at my back as I did, and touched my hair; it was even more knotty than yesterday. This bedroom on the second-floor 'a the staff buildin' was real small; just the bed I was in and a night-table, no furniture. The door in the far corner was closed, locked too, thankfully. On the table on my right was a water bottle – a plastic one, not opened yet – and a little digital clock that said, "7:26 A.M. March 25th, 0215."

"Oh," I muttered under my breath. "Missed my walk with Yorick. …Guess he knows why."

I picked up the water bottle and crackin' it open, takin a little sip. The water was cool, finally makin' the itch in my throat feel better. I grabbed the pile 'a clothes from the floor and picked my panties out, puttin' them on again.

* * *

Wood creaked under the last couple stairs as I stepped down, stopped by the front doors. I smoothed out my skirt and blouse for wrinkles again and looked back. Two flights 'a stairs wound up and down, one on my left and one on my right. Back 'a me was a wooden front desk, no one sittin' there, papers and folders all over. Behind it was a little livin' space; two couches in front of'a big table, chairs, a red rug on the hardwood floor, big window on the other end 'a the room. Doors on either side, smaller tables next to them. The one on the right was open, and a hall just past it.

"Testing, one two three, sibilance," Yorick's voice came from speakers outside. I looked down at my clothes; still a bit wrinkly, it'll have to do. I took a big breath, then I turned 'round and pushed one 'a the doors open, steppin' out.

Campers were already in a big group in front 'a the stage by the clubhouse. Only three or four more was comin' outta the cabins, and they scampered to the crowd. Some 'a the staff was lined up behind the wood stage; their green uniforms had bright green G's on the shoulder now. Yorick was standin' right in the middle 'a the stage, fixin' up the microphone stand, also in uniform. He looked by the staff buildin' and saw me; a little half-grin was on his face.

My heart leapt up, and my shoulders rose with a big breath, nearly by itself. I smiled again and looked back at him, even after he started watchin' the crowds again…

"Emma!" Ruva popped up next to me, starin' with those big, crazy eyes 'a hers.

"Oh," I shook my head, shoulder's droppin'. "Hey, Ruva."

"I've been lookin' all over for ya! Where was ya last night?"

"…Well, I was-"

"Oh you was talkin' to Yorick? About Team Gamma?"

"Yeah… We were talkin' a bit."

She turned 'round, and we started walkin' to the crowd a people. At the edge 'a the group, two more guys were listenin' to a third ramble.

"Ain't it awesome?" Ruva bounced a bit. "It makes so much sense when he talks 'bout it! Like, how else are we gonna get anythin' done with Parlaiment standin' in our way?!"

"Yeah, I dunno…" I nodded and closed my eyes.

"Ruva," Blake's voice spoke easy. I opened my eyes again and looked back; Blake was right behind us, wearin' the same jeans, shoes and hoodie, just a plain blue tee this time.

"Oh hey Blake!" Ruva turned 'round all the way.

"You know, Matt had a few questions on Team Gamma if you'd like answer them," Blake pointed at the other side 'a the crowd. Matt was standin' with a group 'a guys, and he was waivin' at us.

"Oh boy!" Ruva jumped up and down. "Come on!"

"We'll be right there," he put his hands behind is back. Ruva turned and ran across the court, burstin' into Matt's group.

"Thanks," I said quietly, rubbin' my forehead.

"Don't mention it," Blake answered. "She's still in Gamma's fan-club, I see. Any word from Yorick?"

"Nah, he was… a little vague. Nothin' we didn't know before."

"Hmmm… We'll figure it out soon, don't worry. She won't be like this for long."

I took a big breath, and let it out real slow, lookin' at the grass right in front 'a us. Blake just crossed his arms and looked over, to the mountains behind the clubhouse.

"May I have your attention, please," Yorick's voice came from the speakers again.

The chit-chat stopped around us, and everyone looked at the stage. Yorick was standin' in the middle and over everyone else, microphone in front 'a his mouth.

"…We have just a few announcements on this fine morning," he said to the mic. "First, the staff and I would like to remind you-"

A loud, echoey roar drowned out the speakers. Everyone looked off to the mountains by the clinic, but we couldn't see nothin'. The roar rang on the hills and faded back to quiet.

"…Wonder what that was," Blake whispered.

"I got no clues," I whispered back.

"Hmm," Yorick turned to the people. "First, the staff and I would like to remind you to stay on camp grounds at all times. My salamences are here for your safety, and while they are very well trained, they may be… slightly, more aggressive than necessary, should anyone stray too far."

"Yeah, no shit," Blake mumbled under his breath.

"Blake," I made a glance at him.

"With that out of the way, I will briefly go over today's schedule," Yorick reached for his back pocket and pulled out a notecard. "For today only, the Claim Jumper will be open for-"

Another loud roar from the mountains, echoin' to quiet. Campers and workers looked off, then at each other. Yorick stopped again, glancin' back at his closest staff member and waivin' him up. He rushed up the stairs and stopped ay Yorick's side.

"Prep two salamences, I want eyes on the north mountains in sixty seconds," Yorick said quietly. His staff person nodded and jogged off stage, startin' down the lake path as Yorick came back to the mic.

"The Claim Jumper will be open for extended hours today," Yorick kept goin'. "After dinner, there will be a very special presentation during Camp Council, so do not miss it. The rest of the day is yours to spend; all other activities are open as usual. Thank you for your time, you are dismissed for breakfast."

People started spreadin' out, most headin' for Dragon's Claw, some headin' for the cabins, some headin' for the Claim Jumper loomin' over the clubhouse. I took a couple steps ahead, to Matt and Ruva, but stopped and looked back; Blake hadn't moved, his arms still crossed, starin' off at the mountains.

"Blake, what are ya doin'?" I turned and walked back, stoppin' in front 'a him.

"…Something's not right," he answered, lookin' off still.

"Well, I mean, people are-"

"Aside from that. …I can't, really explain, it's-"

He froze, eyes goin' wide. His arms tensed up and he blinked.

"Blake?" I asked.

"…We've got INCOMING!" Blake shouted and pointed behind me.

"What the hell is that?!" another camper yelled.

I swung back and followed Blake's point, where a black and blue dragon swooped down and landed on top 'a the Claim Jumper with a loud crack 'a metal. The ground shook and dust flew from the swing. Campers froze right where they were and watched, Yorick and his people looked up, grabbin' for the pokeballs clipped on their belts.

The speakers made static as the dragon stood on the Claim Jumper, steadily lookin' through the people closest to the clubhouse. It looked like a charizard, but it's scaly skin was black and blue, not orange and cream. Bigger than any charizard I've seen before. It spread its blue flayed wings, broad, spiked shoulders risin' and fallin' with a breath, blue fire pourin' from its mouth. Claws on its three-toed feet gripped metal on the roof and bent it, long tail swingin' back and forth like a pendulum, draggin' a blue flame at the end. Three claws on each its hands curled into fists as its glowin' red eyes focused on the staff, then the campers in front 'a the stage…

The black charizard looked straight at me. My skin went cold. It squinted just a bit, and its thin lips curled as it bared teeth; huge, white spikes bigger than my hands.

"…campers," Yorick's voice came quiet from the speakers. "Please seek shelter in the nearest-"

The dragon snarled and snapped at the sky. A crack 'a thunder rang, a flash near-blinded me and air knocked all us to our backs. The clouds had gone black and wind and howlin'. A flamin' rock slammed into the middle bell with a terrible clang, wood splinters goin' everywhere. Another one smashed the blacktop in front 'a me, nearly singed my skirt. More crashed into side 'a the stage and the clubhouse and the court 'round us. People screamed. My ears were ringin'.

"Get inside, NOW!" the speakers shouted, Yorick's voice.

Campers got up and scrambled. Their horrified screams stuck me to the road. The black charizard watched people run into each other and to the cabins. Then turned to Dragon's Claw and fired a huge, blue, star-shaped flame blast from its mouth. It slammed into the side 'a the building and exploded with a blinding light. Some people flew back and tumbled on the blacktop. Others stopped in their tracks, they turned and ran fast as they could.

"All staff, defensive positions!" Yorick said as he jumped back onto the tilted stage. He grabbed a pokeball from his belt and pushin' its button. In a big flash 'a light the pokeball opened. A jolteon appeared next to him. It looked up at the charizard and growled, standin' tall to Yorick's knee at its shoulder, sparks runnin' across it's yellow spiky fur.

"Are you just gonna sit there or do you wanna live?!" Blake stopped in front 'a me, grabbin' my hand hard and pullin' me up.

I shook my head and got to my feet quick as I could. Another rock blew up right by us and nearly knocked me down again. We stumbled back towards the staff buildin'. More screamin'. It was deafenin'.

"All salamences are inbound!" a raspy voice shouted.

"Good!" Yorick's deeper voice shouted back. "Attack formation, delta foxtrot!"

"Copy! Delta foxtrot!"

Blake stopped in front 'a the double doors and looked back up. I bumped the door and looked up too. The black dragon slowly circled above the middle court. It barely flapped its wings, like it was held up by somethin' I couldn't see. Little yellow bolts 'a lightning hit the dragon from below, pepperin' its gut. It looked down and saw Yorick's jolteon, firin' thunderbolts from the stage. Then it just sneered and looked back to the sky.

Six salamences whooshed past the charizard with gusts 'a wind, one after another. The black and blue beast turned and watched them fly to the mountains past the clinic. Yorick's dragons circled back and shifted 'round into a v-shape, one with a blue arm band in the very front, two on either side, and one with a green arm band right behind 'em. The charizard snarled again.

The salamences swooped in and fired dragon pulses, six purplish beams shot outta their mouths aimed right for the charizard. The black dragon raised a wing and blocked 'em all, didn't even flinch. Then it turned and fired back with it's own purplish beam. It hit the blue-band salamence square in the chest and the middle-right one's wing. They slammed into each other and fell behind us. Three others split up and flew away, and that green arm-banded one went high. It tucked its head and dove for a headbutt. But the charizard caught it by its snout with one hand and stopped it dead in the air. The black dragon punched the green-band salamence in the side 'a the head, then got next to it, grabbed its neck and drove it straight for the courtyard. They landed right in the middle with a big blast 'a dirt. The salamence's body juddered once then went still.

Dust settled down as the black charizard lumbered outta the hole in the courtyard, facin' away from us. Blue fire was still comin' outta it's mouth. Seven adults in staff uniforms ran out from near buildings and surrounded the dragon. They each opened a pokeball; seven exploud pokemon appeared next 'a them, bits 'a ash fallin' on their smooth purple skin as they stomped the ground with their big feet. Yellow ends of their tube-holes flared up on their heads. Big ol' mouths opened and closed a bit. Each exploud stared at the charizard in the middle. The dragon steadily looked at the pokemon and people on the other end, then the ones on my right. Its head swept around slowly until it stopped half-way; glowing red eyes gazed right at me. It snarled again. Then it turned 'round. Took a step closer. Then another.

"Emma!" Yorick's voice shouted. "Get inside!"

"Yeah, time to go," Blake mumbled under his breath. He grabbed one 'a the doors behind me and pulled it open, held it for me.

I darted in and grabbed the right-side railing. Wood clicked as I went down the stairs fast as I could. Big bellows from the explouds shook the buildin'. A huge roar answered. I stopped half-down the stairs to cover my ears and look back. A blindin' blue fireball smashed through the door as Blake dove past me and fell down the stairs. He crashed to the wall on his right shoulder but got back up quick, turnin' 'round for the next flight down. I ran after him.

* * *

"Blake, you okay?" I hopped down the last couple 'a stairs. "That dive had 'a hurt."

"I'm fine," Blake stopped in front of a wood door, rollin' his arm. "You?"

"Yeah," I nodded and stopped next to him. A blast from outside shook the place, and I barely heard a deep whimper. Then a dragon's roar.

"Good," he tried the door handle with his left hand, wouldn't budge. "We have to keep moving. The fires from that fire blast are gonna burn this place down, so we need a back exit. Stay close, now."

Blake took a step back, and kicked the door right on the handle. It cracked loudly and swung open, leadin' to a hall that went both ways. He went in and started right. I followed him through the doorway.

The hall was kinda dark, just a few yellow lights stuck above, lightin' the wood walls, floor and ceilin'. Pairs 'a big, metal doors went all the way to the end 'a the wing, three on a side, each with a little slit to see through. I looked back; three more pairs 'a doors goin' the other way. Ahead was a rickety, metal spiral staircase, leadin' back up.

"…Blake, what are these doors?" I slowed down, hearin' the wood creak with each step. Another scream from outside, this time a person's.

"Not sure," he said quietly, stayin' just ahead. "The door to this hall was locked, though. Staff-only down here."

"…Yeah, Yorick said this was staff-only when I talked to him earlier. But he also said this's where Ruva was."

Blake stopped, right next to the middle pair 'a doors. He looked to the one on the left. Then he reached up to a little slide at his eye-level, slid it open and peered in.

"…the Siphon device…" he mumbled.

"Siphon device?" I walked up next to him. "What's that?"

"…Look for yourself," Blake stepped back. I went right up to the door, standin' on my tippy-toes to see into the little hole.

A little shiver crept up my neck. Inside was a boy my age, strapped to a big metal table in a dim-lit room. He was just in a pair 'a black boxer briefs, his muscly body covered in sweat, his short, red hair was all messy. Eyes closed, mouth open, breathin' heavy by the looks 'a it. Two little pads were stuck to the side 'a his head, and wires ran from the pads to a metal box as big as a fridge. It was all black metal, had a bunch 'a buttons in the middle, and painted on the front was a yellow snake with red eyes, makin' an "S" with itself.

"That metal crate is a brainwashing device, designed by Team Siphon," Blake said. "It modifies the thought patterns of its victims with artificial psychic energy."

"…Is… Are, you sure," I looked at Blake.

"Certain. Redwood has contacts in the police, and he's told me about some of Siphon's lesser-known endeavors."

"…So, that means," I turned back to the door, makin' a breath. "That means Yorick, he-"

"Look, what Yorick did isn't important right now," Blake turned 'round and took a couple easy steps along. "What's important, is staying as far away from that mega charizard as possible."

I made another breath, then closed my eyes. Then I turned and started after-

A blast behind us rocked the whole place really hard. I jumped and looked back, where the hall by the door was blocked by thick black dust. I took a few steps back, bumpin' into Blake a bit, who also had stopped and turned 'round.

Bits 'a dirt and ash swirled with a puff 'a wind. Wood creaked, then snapped, splinters flyin' out at us. A pair 'a glowin' bright red eyes opened, fallin' over my shoulder, then right on me. Blue light glowed through the dust, and a deep, low growl made the doors shake.

"…I fucking hate my mouth," Blake muttered, turnin' round and runnin' down the hall. I ran after him fast as I could, wood shakin' with each step I took.

The beast roared, so loud that it shook my eyes. Blake got to the stairs and ran up, two at a time. I grabbed the railing and got goin' up one by one. They made loud metal clicks with our steps.

"Come on!" Blake looked back at me. "No time to- GET DOWN!"

He grabbed my shoulder and pushed me into the stairs. I banged my wrists hard on the metal, which got real hot real quick. The whole room started glowin' bright blue. I looked down between the stairs; a huge blue flame was spittin' outta the doorway, bendin' up and to the ceilin' off the wall. Bright white in the middle. I wasn't even touchin' and it still blisterin'.

The blue fire cut out from the doorway. It stuck to the back wall and kept the room hot. Little blue embers covered the ground and started sparkin' on the wood. Blake got back to his feet and started runnin' up again. I stood up as fast as I could and followed him 'round the stairs.

* * *

Blake hopped up the last metal stair and stopped on the wood stair, brushin' ash off his coat. I stopped next 'a him, and tried to make a big breath; hot air itched at my lungs, and I coughed real hard.

The room was small, and there was nothin' in it expect the stairs behind us and a little hall ahead, which went left back towards the lobby. On our right was a door, but it was completely on fire with the rest 'a the wall. A little "Exit" sign was still glowin' red over the door, but it sparked up and went dark.

"Guess we ain't-" I coughed again, "Ain't goin' that way."

"Guess not," Blake muttered. "Come on, back to the lobby."

He marched to the hall. I jogged a bit to catch up as we went 'round the corner, and started passin' a whole bunch a wood doors. Some were open; beds and night-tables, all made neat.

Fires were cacklin' behind us. Wood snapped somewhere. A voice was shouting ahead, quiet from here. A man's voice. Deep tone.

"…Emma!" he shouted again. "Can you hear me?! Emma!"

"Yorick! Yorick!" I shouted and ran ahead 'a Blake. He stopped for a sec, then kept marchin'.

I jogged through the door and stopped in the lobby. The table that was in the middle was gone, and I could only see half the flamin' couches through thick black smoke that blocked my view 'a the back window. A big ol' hole sat where the desk was, too big to jump over, cuttin' us off from the front doors. I could see straight down to the basement, stairs and all.

"Emma!" Yorick rushed through the front doorway and slid to stop in front 'a the hole. Two shorter guys in staff outfits stopped next 'a him.

"We're okay!" I waived at him.

"Thank Arceus," he made a big breath. "Where's Trotsky?"

"Right here," Blake walked past me and stopped. "How do we get out of this building?"

"Down the hall," Yorick pointed to the other door. "There's an exit on the opposite wing. Hurry, we don't know where that charizard went."

"Understood," he nodded, starting for that other door. "Last I saw, it was-"

A huge, scaly three-clawed hand came outta the smoke and grabbed Blake by his hood. A black and blue charizard with red eyes stepped outta from the smolder, then it flung Blake to the table which blew to pieces. He slumped to the ground. A loud high shriek rang in my ears. The dragon turned and glared at me. I put a hand over my mouth; the shriek was mine.

Hollow pop 'a wood, its head flinched forward. Then it snarled and turned. Blake was standin' again. He flipped a splinter in his hand. The charizard stood tall. Flapped its wings. Eyes shook when it roared again.

"Bring it on, big guy," Blake growled.

It bent its knees and launched at Blake. Right hand came back and claws swung. But Blake ducked low, they went over his head with a whoosh. He swung up with the board but it leaned back and missed. Then Blake jumped up and kicked it right in the neck. It hissed and stumbled back a bit.

"Don't just stand there!" Yorick turned to his people. "Get to them!"

They turned 'round and sprinted out. Yorick stayed and watched Blake, who stood and waited. The dragon raised to full height in the middle 'a the room. Then it chuckled and started marchin' up to Blake.

When it got close Blake wound up and swung his splinter. The dragon blocked it with an arm and it smashed to pieces. Then it lunged and grabbed him by his neck, pinnin' him to the wall and liftin' him up. I heard him gasp and he started flailin' and punchin' and kickin' with everythin' he had. He smacked at the charizard's arm and shoulder. It didn't even blink.

The beast clenched its free hand. Then it shot into Blake's gut, he shouted and doubled over. It chuckled again and dropped Blake, who fell to his hands and knees and grabbed for his gut. The dragon turned 'round and its cold red eyes were on me again. My feet were stuck to the ground. I couldn't breathe. It took a step closer.

"Emma!" Yorick's voice shouted. "Run! Back the way you came!"

"Emma…" Blake barely looked up.

"Trotsky! My men can't get there in time! You have to get up! TROTSKY!"

But Blake only groaned again, fallin' back down. The dragon took another step closer. Then another. Its wings opened up and it backed me into the wall. Nowhere to run.

"…Yorick," I barely said.

"Emma!" Yorick shouted even louder. "Go! GO! For Arceus sake, please-"

The dragon snarled and reached out. Its massive claws grabbed under my armpits and squeezed tight. I barely felt my feet leave the ground.

"EMMA!" Yorick shouted as loud as he could. The beast stuck me to its shoulder. I saw Yorick's eyes; wide and teary.

"YORIIIIIIIIIIICK!" I screamed at the top 'a my lungs, squirmin' as hard as I could to get free. With one more low growl the dragon pushed me up on its shoulder and started walkin' away. Yorick dropped to his knees as he disappeared behind the smolder.


	8. Chapter 7: A Boy and a Rescue

Chapter 7: A Boy and a Rescue _(Blake)_

With a grunt, I stumbled through what remained of the front door and took a few steps away the staff building, stopping to put a hand on my stomach. Most of the structure behind me was ablaze by now, brilliant blue flames streaming from a hole just above my head. Across the way, Dragon's Claw was torn in half and still burning. The cabins had holes in their walls and ceiling, some worse than others; Bug cabin suffered only a few here and there, Steel cabin had lost half of its upper floor. The bell in the middle was gone, and sitting in a hole in the courtyard was an unconscious salamence, green-band on its arm. A staff member stayed crouched next to it, spraying the fallen beast with a potion of some kind. Shattered glass and bits of rock covered the ground, scorch marks dotted the asphalt and small fires kindled in the grass. Several campers were lying in the courtyard, on the asphalt, and by the buildings, covered in blood, dirt and ash. They were surrounded by other campers, who were trying their best to clean their fallen friends and care for their injuries.

"Blake!" a voice called from the masses. Gently sliding past a group of campers by Fire cabin, Matt ran across the courtyard and towards me, soot covering his arms, shoulders, grey shorts, white tee and blonde hair. I waived him down with my free hand, the other still holding my gut.

"Glad to see you're alright, Matt," I spoke up, taking a deep breath.

"Yeah, where were you?" he stopped in front of me.

"Oh, you know," I took a few more paces away from the staff building. "Meeting our new friend up-close and personal."

"You got close to that charizard?!" Matt gawked, following by my side.

"Yeah, and it packs a hell-of-a gut-punch… Where's Yorick?"

"Yorick? I think I saw him going to the clinic, regrouping with his staff. Or whoever's still standing, I guess."

"Then let's go," I picked up speed, turning left towards the clinic. "We need to talk strategy."

"Strategy?" he walked faster to keep up. "For what?"

"…Emma was taken by that dragon. I guarantee Yorick's planning to rescue her."

"…Oh no," Matt's eyes fell to the asphalt.

We passed a group of campers on the edge of the grass, surrounding a girl who was lying on the ground. She laid completely motionless, staring blankly at the sky. Her long, blonde hair was knotted and dirty, her narrower face was still. A leather jacket was laid over her chest like a blanket, and one of her jean legs was soaked in blood, a little piece of bone sticking out of her calf.

Matt and I looked back up, turning towards the clinic and starting up the path. Three staff members were standing in front of the slightly damaged building, and Yorick was standing in front of them.

"…If the salamences can fight, then they will escort our search party," Yorick spoke firmly. "What are their statuses?"

"Three of them are uninjured," one of the staff responded, wiping some dirt off his gaunt face with the back of his hand. "Two can be healed within-"

"Don't bother with the dragons," I stepped past the camp staff, stopping between them and Yorick. "They were nothing to that mega charizard. It'd make more sense to keep them here, protect the camp as best we can."

"Trotsky…" Yorick turned to face me. "You're late."

"Forgive me, it hits like a truck," I gingerly pressed my fingers to my midsection, and winced slightly. "Do we know where it went?"

"Reports say it went North," another member of Yorick's staff answered, scratching his head through buzz-cut blonde hair, and adjusting the thick-rimmed glasses over his blue eyes. "We're beginning to form a search party, though we took heavy losses from the attack."

"How many can we afford to send, Ross?" Yorick turned to the blonde-haired man.

"Counting all of us here…" he looked down at his clipboard. "With Tomez on the salamence in the courtyard and Kaber getting a casualty report, we have four capable staff."

"Hmmm…" Yorick put a hand to his chin, his eyes turning to the ground at Ross's feet. "We could run a standard search team with one more person…"

"…I'll do it," I straightened up. Yorick looked me straight in the eyes, his thumb slowly stroking the hairs of his beard.

"…Fine," Yorick turned back to his staff. "Ross, I need you to finish Kaber's casualty report and prepare five sets of-"

"Yorick!" a quiet voice spoke from Yorick's hip, a girl's voice. "Can you hear me?! Yorick?!"

He froze in place, then looked to his hip and grabbed the radio attached to his belt. The staff around us hastily followed suit, raising the devices to their ears and turning up the volume.

"Emma?" Yorick answered. "Emma, is that you?! Are you alright?!"

"Yeah, I'm okay!" Emma's voice spoke from the radios around us.

"Thank Arceus," his chest rose and fell with a massive sigh of relief. "Do you know where you are?"

"I'm on a mountain, some kinda, half peak, I guess. A big half-circle 'a burned stuff all 'round."

"Can you see the camp from here?"

"Nah, but I see a big pillar 'a smoke. I think it's south 'a here but I dunno."

"That must be the fires from the camp. Can you move towards it?"

"No, I'm stuck. There's this chain locked 'round my leg and I'm tied down."

"A, chain? A metal one?"

"Yeah, right 'round my ankle! It was melted into the rock!"

Yorick blinked, looking up at his staff. The three men stared back. Ross gave a small shrug.

"…Understood," Yorick looked back down at his radio. "Any sign of the charizard?"

"It's… here," Emma whispered back. "But it's just, lookin' at me…"

"Eyes down, Emma," he lowered his voice, barely more than a mumble. "It might see a challenge if you look at it directly, understood?"

"Yeah, got it."

"I'm forming a rescue team now," Yorick spoke a little louder. "We don't know how far you are from the camp, so we could be several hours. Keep your head down, stay out of the charizard's way, and we'll be there as soon as possible, alright?"

"Okay, please hurry!"

The camp leader's brown eyes remained on the device in his hand. His worn and calloused index finger reached for the wheel embedded within its side, and he scrolled it down by half a spin before attaching it to his belt again. Yorick kept his gaze on the radio, his chest rising and falling with another sigh. Matt glanced at Yorick, then at me, before turning his eyes to the ground.

"…You heard the boss," I looked to the other three men. "This isn't a search team anymore, this is a rescue party. Get moving, double time."

"Ross, you will be in charge while the rest of us are away," Yorick looked back up. "Send Kaber to the clinic, prepare five sets of equipment, and finish his casualty report."

"Yes, sir," Ross immediately turned and started walking back towards the courtyard. The other two staff members stayed close behind.

"Both of you, follow them," Yorick added. "Matt, I want you helping Ross with his casualty report, and Blake, Ross will have a vest and a set of fatigues for you by the staff building. We will depart as soon as possible."

"Understood," we answered in unison, then turned and started back down the path we came. I glanced over my shoulder; Yorick stared at the back of Matt's head for another moment, before slowly marching to the clinic's front door, opening it and stepping inside.

"…Matt," I turned to him.

"Yeah Blake?" he looked up.

"…There's a bigger picture here," I leaned in close, dropped my tone. "A picture that we are not seeing. Mega charizards don't just show up from the wild and kidnap people, someone has to be behind this."

"I've been thinking that, too," he whispered back. "But how can a pokemon do all that without its trainer?"

"That's what I'm going to find out," I slowed as we approached the courtyard, stopping at the edge of the grass. "Yorick's only concern right now is getting Emma back, so we're gonna start piecing this together ourselves. Stay here, help Ross with the wounded, and be ready for whatever comes next."

"…So the whole 'Team Gamma' thing," Matt stopped next to me. "We're not worried about that anymore?"

"No. Team Gamma is irrelevant. We deal with the dragon first, and whatever's behind it second."

Matt nodded, looking up and letting out a sigh. Just 20 feet away, the green-banded salamence remained in the hole, eye closed but still breathing. The man next to him finished wrapping a bandage on his neck, before picking up another potion from the ground and spraying the beast's shoulder.

"…We better get moving," I said. "No time to lose."

"Right," Matt nodded, starting diagonally across the courtyard towards Fire cabin. "Be careful out there, Blake."

"Take care, Matt," I waived him off, and turned to follow the edge of the grass towards the other side of the staff building. I looked back to the hole in the front of the structure; bright blue flames were pouring out, rising to the sky.


	9. Chapter 8: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Chapter 8: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing _(Emma)_

The little rock hit the ground next to me, makin' a dent in the black dirt with a soft pat. I reached out and picked it up; it was burnt black, smooth on the faces, but sharp on the edges, and it was small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. I rolled it between my fingers, and then tossed it again. It hit the ground with another soft pat, makin' another little hole next to the first.

I made a long breath, shiftin' my back on the rocky face behind me and sittin' up a bit. Off a ways ahead were more mountains, some taller than the one I was standin' on, but most shorter. Pine trees went all the way up most 'a them, but some were bare rock at the top. The ground was all black and charred 'round me, all the way out to a little trench that went in a little half circle in front 'a me, 40 feet away by a guess. The big, rocky face behind me was 'bout 20 feet tall, uneven grey stone, and slanted down either way 'till it met the edge 'a the trench. Past the trees ahead was a tiny pillar 'a smoke, pitch black, risin' right into the layer 'a clouds above.

"Ugh…" I looked to the ground to my left, where a huge metal chain sat coiled on the ground, wrappin' round my ankle with a massive silver lock to hold it. "How long's it been… Two hours? Maybe? Feels like forever…"

With a little huff I looked back up. Sittin' on the ground a few yards away was my radio, lyin' on its back, speaker up. I leaned forward and swung my legs behind me, reachin' out with my left hand. The chain held tight. I stretched far as I could, and barely brushed it with my long finger. Tugged once. Then twice. It was so close. But I couldn't-

The ground shook with a big thud, and the radio jumped a bit. My eyes shot to the right; the black and blue charizard was marchin' my way, heat was risin' as he got close. I barely recognized it 'fore I was scramblin' back, my spine diggin' into the rocky face again.

But it didn't follow me. It only went to the radio and stopped, lookin' my way, then at the device on the ground. It reached out a foot and scooted it further, just a itty bit. Then it crouched low and swung its tail 'round, curlin' up and lyin' right between me and the radio. The beast closed its eyes, and took a deep breath in. Dirt kicked up 'round its face when it breathed out, its chest fell to match.

"…dang," I muttered to myself. "Had to go right there, huh?"

The dragon's eyes opened, and looked right at me. I froze up. It slowly shook its head down and up, then closed its eyes again.

"…did, did you just nod?" I whispered. "Do you know what I'm sayin'?"

Glowin' red eyes opened once over, still right on me. It slowly shook its head down and up, then its eyes closed again.

"…so, you're pretty smart, then. …you knew what you were doin'."

Its chest rose high, and fell with a big breath out. Warm air hit my face and rustled my clothes. It didn't move. I didn't move.

"…Are you… on your own?" I spoke up a tiny bit. "Or is someone with ya?"

The black charizard took another big breath, kickin' up more dirt in front 'a its nose. Its eyelids opened again; shinin' red eyes refocused on me. It breathed quietly, just starin' up.

"…are… you, gonna answer that?"

It made another breath. Shook its head side to side. Never took its eyes off me.

"Alright. …probably means you can't, answer that, then."

It blinked. Twice. Then it nodded.

"Figured… means you probably have a train-"

" _*tsshh tsshh tsshh. tsssssssshhhhh, tsssssssshhhhh, tsssssssshhhhh. tsshh tsshh tsshh._ *"

I winced a little and sat up. The dragon and I looked over its shoulder, at the radio still on the ground. It was makin' that static when someone holds down the talk button. But there was a pattern to it; three short bursts, three long ones, three short ones.

The black charizard listened close, slowly gettin' back to its feet. As it stood up it grabbed the radio, plastic clicking on its ivory claws. It stared at it, cocking its head as it heard the pattern run again, then pushed the talk button and held it down. The other end quickly went quiet. It took another second to stare, then dropped the device at its feet. With one last snort, the dragon turned and started walkin' away, openin' its wings and flappin' them just a bit.

"Wait, wait, wait!" I stood up and ran after it, goin' as far as the chain would let me. "Was that them? Are they at the camp?!"

It slowed down, then stopped, lookin' over its shoulder. When its eyes locked on me I unthinkingly stepped back, my skin gone cold. All it did was shake its head side to side, 'fore it turned back around, bent its knees, and launched up, flappin' its wings to gain height. The black dragon banked to the right and dove a bit. It started pickin' up speed as it disappeared behind a mountain.

* * *

"…Possible eyes on the location," a man's voice said from the radio. "Still no response from Emma."

"What do you think that means?" another one asked.

"It _means_ get moving, double time," Yorick's voice growled. "Regroup at my location, and keep your eyes up."

I let out a breath, watchin' the radio that was just outta reach, before turnin' my eyes to the sky. Spread-out, pink-purple clouds on a yellowish sky; the sun was gonna go down soon. It was startin' to get colder, and this skirt and blouse weren't doin any favors. The leaves in the trees swayed side to side with a chilly breeze, and a pidgeot jumped out of the top of one in the distance, glidin' a bit before landing in another one nearby.

My back scratched on the stone as I sat up again, closin' my eyes and rubbin' them slow. Maybe, when I open them again, I'll just be on the bus back home instead of here. Ruva'll be next to me, talking more about her big fundraisin' tournament. Maybe I'll get in touch with Yorick when I get to Twilight Town, and he'll meet us there to help run the whole-

Rustle in the bushes ahead. I jumped and opened my eyes again; a jolteon was creepin' outta the shrubs, lookin' left, then right. Yorick stepped out right behind it, wearin' all-out soldier gear, pitch black, loads 'a pouches on his vest and his pants. Right behind 'em was Blake, in a matchin' uniform and pointin' an assault rifle 'round. Three more guys followed, an exploud next to each 'a them. They stopped at the edge 'a the trench, silently checkin' the area.

"…Clear," Blake whispered.

"Fan out," Yorick stepped over the trench and rushed my way. Blake stayed close to him, pickin' up the radio as he passed it, and the others stepped into the area and began spreadin' out.

"Emma, are you alright?" Yorick stopped in front 'a me and knelt down.

"Yeah," I sighed, shoulders sinkin' down. "I'm okay now."

"We're gonna need to break that chain," Blake stopped up to us and turned 'round, aimin' his rifle. "I don't suppose we had a bolt cutter to bring."

"Nothing small enough to carry here," Yorick looked over a bit. "You think that rifle would do the job?"

"What is this, thirty-ought-six?" he looked down the side 'a his weapon. "If that's a grade 100 chain we're looking at, not likely."

"Yorick?" one 'a the other men stopped at a corner, staring at the ground. "What's this ditch?"

"Territory markings, most likely," Yorick answered. "Why?"

"There's something in it," he nodded over. "Some kind of tar, if I had to guess."

"Wait, Yorick, there was someone on the radio," I looked up. "Someone was pushin' the talk button a couple 'a times, and I think the dragon answered."

"It, answered your radio?" Blake looked at me. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, I think it's workin' with someone," I pushed myself up a bit. "So it can't be wild."

"And if it isn't wild…" Yorick looked down. "It wouldn't need to mark territory-"

A hollow roar 'a flame cut him off, the sky lit up blue. All 'a us looked up and saw a huge stream of blue fire, hittin' the far edge of the trench on my left. The stream only stayed for a sec then cut off, but the flames rapidly spread 'round the trench. A black dragon whooshed past overhead, and by the time it got in front 'a us and banked up, the blue fire had made a full circle to the other end; surrounded flames and rock.

"Son of a BITCH!" Blake's voice rose to a roar, pointin' his rifle toward the beast. "THE FUCKER SET A TRAP!"

"Spread out!" Yorick shouted as he scrambled to his feet. "Trotsky, get on that chain! We'll cover you!"

"Got it! Emma, back up!"

I crawled away from Blake fast as I could, until the chain was pulled tight. Blake pointed his gun at the chain link at his feet and pulled the trigger; a sharp _pop_ rang out and the barrel flashed and I winced before thinkin'. Another quick shot and a metallic ring, but the chain didn't budge. Two more quick shots and two more metallic rings, but on the third he flinched and barely dodged a ricochet.

A big thud made the ground rumble, and Blake looked over. The black charizard had landed in the middle 'a the circle, blue fire streamin' from his mouth, glowin' red eyes starin' me down. Yorick and his jolteon was right between us and the dragon. His three staff members had spread out as much they could, and their explouds had planted their feet, breathin heavy as they waited for command.

"Yorick!" the staff guy on the left called. "We need those salamences up here, we can't take this thing!"

"No!" Yorick snapped back. "If we call them up, we leave the camp defenseless! Stall out the fires; conserve you energy and stay on your toes!"

The beast scanned from my left to my right, sizin' up the people and the explouds next to them. It took a deep breath in. Then it clenched its fists and let loose a deafenin' roar to the sky, becomin' surrounded in a deep red glow.

"OUTRAGE!" Yorick called. "Brace yours-"

But the charizard warped to my left and punched one 'a Yorick's men straight in the chest. Bones shattered with a terrible crack and he was thrown through the flames and outta the circle. The exploud next to him stumbled and fell on its back. Before it could get up the black beast was in front 'a it, and the dragon brought a fist down straight on its head. A nauseating squish filled my ears and I shut my eyes fast as I could, but it was too late; an exploud's head exploded into blood and brains and bones over and over in my head.

"OPEN FIRE!" Yorick hollered. Loud shockwaves and electric sounds and deafenin' roars filled my ears. My eyes were glued shut, and I curled up on the ground where I was, makin' myself small as possible.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, FU-" another man's voice was cut off by another sickenin' squish, then another. More gunshots sounded through the mess 'a noise, and more metallic clinks with them; Blake was hammerin' away at the chain again.

When the gunshots paused and the other noise died down, I finally remembered to open my eyes. I looked up and saw Blake still standin' by the chain, as he dropped a magazine and loaded another into the gun. Yorick and his jolteon had barely moved, starin' dumbfounded at the black dragon just in front of 'em. The beast's red aura had faded, and it stood over two bodies; one person, one exploud, both still and gushin' blood. To the left was the lone exploud, its head crushed in like a soda can, and to the right was another person and exploud pair, these two smashed together, guts and bone bits all over.

The black charizard kicked the two bodies in front of it to the side, and laughed; a low, grumblin' chuckle that could 'a come from the ground below. It took a few steps toward Yorick, but his jolteon jumped in between them, bearin' its teeth and bendin' its knees. The dragon stopped, lookin' down on the jolteon. It stomped a foot and roared so loud I thought my eardrums would burst. More gunshots and metallic rings followed as Blake started shooting at the chain again.

"Double Edge!" Yorick called and pointed.

His lightnin' pokemon lunged faster than I could see and rammed the dragon's gut. The beast slid back a bit and threw a dragon claw forward, just scratching the lightning pokemon's shoulder as it bounced back towards Yorick. The jolteon gracefully landed in front of its master, and shook quickly as it planted its feet.

"Again! Flank it!"

Yorick's jolteon charged again. The dragon hurled another dragon claw, but the lightning pokemon darted right and dodged it. The jolteon jumped at the black charizard's neck, sparks flyin' from his mouth, and bit down right through its scaly skin. But the dragon just grumbled, and swatted at the lightning pokemon like it was a caterpie bite. Yorick's jolteon sprung off the beast's shoulder and leapt high in the air. The dragon turned and stomped its foot, shakin' the earth and sending a fissure in the ground toward the jolteon. Yorick's pokemon had no time to react when it hit the ground, and was thrown back into the air by the earthquake, landin' on its side with a crack and tumblin' to a stop next to the bluish flames.

"Jolteon!" Yorick rushed to his pokemon's side, rippin' a pokeball from his belt. He quickly opened the ball and beamed his pokemon away with a quick flash, then turned to see the black charizard right in his face. It quickly grabbed Yorick by the neck and the side of his hip, then ripped his belt and throw him aside. He slid on the charred dirt and stopped, growlin' in pain as he grabbed for a holster on his shoulder.. The dragon chuckled and started marchin' to him.

"No, no, NO!" I screamed, my eyes startin' to water. "Yorick! Yorick!"

"Fuck," Blake muttered to himself. He turned and pointed the rifle at the charizard and pulled the trigger. Another gunshot rang out and a bullet bounced off the charizard's back. It flinched the teeniest bit and turned around, growlin' and glarin' at Blake with those glowin' red eyes.

"Remember me, big guy?!" Blake shouted, firin' two quick rounds at the dragon, then three more. They bounced off its neck and shoulders and the beast hissed loud, raisin' a hand to shield its eyes.

Two muzzle-flashes, two harsh pops, two more bullets bouncin' off its scaly hide. Blake started walkin' away from me as he spammed the trigger, firin' round after round after round. Seven more shots rang in my ears 'fore the rifle clicked loudly and locked up. He spammed the trigger a few more times; it only made more clicks. The charizard dropped its hand and grinned, fully turnin' around.

Blake tossed the rifle away and charged at the dragon full-speed. It smirked bigger and rose, floatin' gently in the air. With the snap of its head the charizard spat blue flames at Blake like a flamethrower; the whoosh 'a flame was deafenin'. But Blake dropped to his knees and slid under the fires, then scrambled up and ran towards Yorick. He went right under the dragon, who dropped from the sky to crush Blake under him, and he dove towards Yorick, just gettin' outta the way.

The beast crashed onto the dirt. It shook the earth again. Before it could stand all the way it was struck in the back, and lurched forward. The beast's eyes lit like wildfire, it turned on a dime and threw another claw. But Blake stepped back and dodged, countering with a lightnin' fast smack to the head with a revolver-grip. The dragon reeled, groanin' and stumblin' back towards me. Blake gave the revolver a quick spin on his finger, and pointed it straight at the charizard's head.

Blake and the dragon froze. It stared him down. He stared it down. Both 'a them were huffin' and puffin', their shoulders moved up and down quickly. The revolver shined a silvery-blue from the fires around us.

"…Well done, Trotsky," Yorick got to his feet, stumblin' a bit. "Now finish it off."

He only rolled his fingers on the revolver's grip. The black and blue charizard took a big, deep breath, and Blake did the same, right in sync with it. The fires 'round us crackled. A little wind blew over the mountains.

"…What are you waiting for?" Yorick's eyebrows furrowed. "Kill the beast so we can be done with this."

Blake just kept starin'. He and the dragon didn't move. A raspy 'caw' overhead showed a mandibuzz was somewhere close, probably waitin' for the commotion to die down.

But with the smallest chuckle, Blake grinned. The revolver lowered to the beast's gut, then to it's feet, then the ground right in front 'a him.

"…And, why, would I do that again?" Blake asked flatly.

"…Trotsky, what the hell are you doing?!" Yorick exploded. "That charizard is dangerous and untrainable, JUST KILL IT!"

"Untrainable?" Blake looked over his shoulder, his face fallin' flat. "That's a rather… uncanny description, Yorick. What makes you say that?"

Now Yorick was huffin' and puffin', a ragin' glare in his eyes. Blake on the other hand was calm, way too calm. Yorick's eyes darted to the dragon, then back to Blake, 'fore quickly shakin' his head and taking a big, loud breath.

"…I don't know what's gotten into you, Trotsky," Yorick calmed his tone. "But once we deal with the dragon, and free Emma, I'll explain everything on the way-"

"No, no, tell me now," Blake turned all the way 'round, his thumb gently lowerin' the revolver's hammer. "You have me interested."

Yorick drew a sharp breath in, but stopped himself, lettin' his breath out slowly. He looked back to the dragon, who was stayin' right where it was, even though Blake wasn't holdin' it at gunpoint now.

"…This isn't the first time I've meet this pokemon," Yorick grumbled. "It was a charmander once, in Professor Redwood's care. Like yourself, I was a student of Redwood, and when he told me he had this charmander, the first thing I did was take it out of the PC box to begin training. I wanted a charizard more than anything at the time, so this seemed to me the perfect opportunity to raise one."

Yorick took a deep breath, still starin' at the dragon, who looked over Blake's shoulder to stare back at him. Blake was also watchin' Yorick, the tiniest grin on his face.

"…Redwood advised against raising the charmander, and I should have listened," Yorick continued. "It was the most stubborn, mean-spirited, uncooperative pokemon I have _ever_ attempted to handle. I tried everything to gain its trust, to have it follow my lead in battle, and never once did it entertain my orders. Thankfully, Redwood was willing to take it back once I had enough."

"…I see," Blake nodded. "And, how do you know that that charmander, is in fact this pokemon behind me?"

"It's eyes," Yorick didn't hesitate. "Redwood's charmander had the spark of defiance in its gaze; a spark I haven't seen before nor since. Until this dragon came along, that is."

"But then…" Blake looked back at the beast. "How did it go from a charmander, to this?"

"I'm uncertain… A couple of years after I returned the charmander, Redwood informed me that it was sent to the Vyzoc Charizard Sanctuary, 900 miles south of here. It must have been put through some form of experimentation to reach this permanent-mega state, though it has the same look in its eye as that charmander; it is the same pokemon."

Blake's face fell to flat. He blinked, and nodded just a bit. The revolver sat comfy in his hand. The dragon was starin' back at Blake, its shoulders risin' and fallin' with another breath.

"But there, now you know," Yorick growled. "So for the love of Arceus, kill that charizard, NOW!"

Blake only grinned again. His feet shuffled in the black, burned dirt as he turned 'round. Yorick gave him a real nasty glare.

"You see, Yorick…" Blake looked him in the eye. "I'm not going to. Because I did something you couldn't, and I did it a very, long time ago…"

Yorick's glare vanished with no trace, his eyes went slightly wide at him. Blake began to laugh quietly, shakin' his head side to side. The charizard took a step forward, quietly creepin' up on Blake, and stopped right behind him.

"…Allow me to formally introduce you," Blake and the dragon eyed Yorick together. "This, is Z. …And he is mine."

The terrible black dragon flapped its wings, rufflin' Blake's hair and kickin' up ash into Yorick's face. A faint rattlin' came from the chain; I peeked down and realized my leg was shaking.

" _…You,_ " Yorick muttered. "All of this… was _you._ "

Blake just nodded slow. The charizard named Z had a twisted grin on its face.

"…You sent this charizard against me?!" he blew up again. "YOU destroyed my camp?!"

"Well, I only told him to cause a commotion," Blake chuckled, lookin' back at his dragon and givin' a point. "But I must admit, that Dragon's Tempest was a nice touch."

"What in the distortion world is a Dragon's Tempest?!"

"That meteor shower, he used it earlier this morning," he shrugged, turnin' back to Yorick. "It functions like draco meteor, but without weakening his other attacks. There is high collateral damage with that move, but…"

"Oh, you vicious little-" Yorick growled and broke into a march, straight for Blake.

"That's a bad decision," Blake said bluntly, quickly puttin' the revolver in a holster and takin' a casual couple steps forward. The dragon stayed where he was, shakin' his head just a bit.

The two men met halfway and Yorick threw a massive punch. But Blake dodged without even puttin' his hands up and slipped right past him. Yorick stumbled on and slowed down, while Blake kept walkin' like he wasn't even there.

"Wait," Blake stopped, put a hand to his chin, then turned around and looked at Yorick. "Oh, right, we were supposed to be fighting."

Yorick snarled and turned 'round. Blake just grinned bigger and faced him, takin' his slow, casual steps again.

They came face-to-face, and this time Yorick threw a lighter side-hook. But Blake hardly moved right to avoid that too. Yorick was real quick to follow with an upper-cut, though Blake was too fast, and he dodged left without even tryin'. Blake barely twitched his arm and a muffled smack rang and Yorick gasped for a breath; I blinked before I realized Blake punched him.

"Damnnit," Yorick growled and threw another punch. Another smack 'a skin when it hit Blake's palm, but he just grinned and twitched again. Yorick's head whipped up and he stumbled back, bumpin' into the charizard's gut. Z the black dragon grinned, puttin' a claw on his shoulder blade and shovin' him real hard. Poor Yorick was sent stumblin' back to Blake, who jumped up and kicked him hard in the chest, he cried out and fell back. He hit the dirt right between the two with a thud, and Blake only smirked bigger as he marched up to Yorick, liftin' him by his shirt collar and raisin' another fist.

"Wait, Blake, STOP!" I shouted, my eyes startin' to water. "Don't hurt him!"

Blake froze in place, his grin fadin' away. He and the dragon turned their heads, their expressions flat. Two pairs 'a eyes landed right on mine; one piercin' blue, the other glowin' red, both with a certain… cold, in their stare.

"…She's right," Blake looked back down at Yorick. "We don't need to draw this out."

He let go 'a Yorick, and just as he hit the ground the charizard bent down and grabbed Yorick's vest again. With a little flick, Z sent Yorick slidin' to my left, stoppin' a few yards from the fires. Yorick managed to lean up, and put an arm under himself.

"Perhaps I got a little, carried away," Blake shrugged, steppin' in front 'a his charizard and turnin' towards Yorick. "I apologize, that was quite unprofessional."

"Tch, professional," Yorick glared at Blake. "What does you even-"

But he stopped, narrowin' his eyes. Blake grinned a little again.

"…Of course," Yorick growled. "A damned Valkyrie in my midst…"

"Wait, wait, slow down," I squeezed my eyes shut. "Yorick, Blake, what is goin' on?!"

"Simple, Emma," Blake reached into his back pocket and pulled out a tiny black wallet, flippin' it open to show a silver badge 'a some kind. "I'm a Valkyrie, and I'm here in service of the Order. I was sent to observe Yorick's actions and disrupt anything criminal, with lethal force if necessary."

"Your 'lethal force' was sloppy at best," Yorick pushed himself to stand, but fell to a knee. "Now three good men have died here for nothing, never mind those who perished when your _monster_ attacked."

"If only things were that simple," Blake turned to Yorick. "I could have easily broken into your personal quarters and ended your life while Orryn slept, but what of the morning after? What of your followers, who find you dead shortly after announcing your ultimate cause? No one can deny it; you're a big name in this region. And you could have easily become a martyr, if your demise had the slightest hint of foul play."

"Hmmm," Yorick's nostrils flared up a bit, pushin' back up to his feet, wobblin' a bit. "…so if's indirect you wanted, why all of this? And more importantly, how?"

"How?" Blake chuckled. "How what? Specify your question."

"For one, how did you communicate with your dragon? He must have known we were coming in order to spring the trap."

"Well, I had Z take Emma because I knew she had a radio. I took one of yours from the shed, just in case you decided I didn't need one up here."

"…So it was you with the talk button, as Emma mentioned… but those in the shed weren't in my network. The one you took should have been useless."

"And when I picked it up, it was," Blake shrugged. "So I borrowed Emma's the night before. Only took a moment to tap in."

Yorick stared at Blake, his eyebrows furrowin' a bit. His gaze fell to Blake's feet, then wandered along the ground and stopped at the chain melted into the rock. Then Yorick looked up the tiniest bit, his deep brown eyes lockin' onto mine.

"…You, helped him, didn't you," he asked, the weight in his voice seepin' through. Blake looked to me for a reaction.

"Yorick, I-" I squirmed up to my feet. "I had no clue this would happen, this isn't what I wanted!"

His gaze stayed right on me. Past the dirt and ash on his face, the tiniest tears were startin' to form in his eye.

"Yorick, please, I didn't know!" my eyes got watery again. "I didn't know he would do this! I didn't wanna get kidnapped by that MONSTER! I just- It was- …Ruva, I couldn't handle how she was, and- and…"

My knees wobbled, then gave out wholly and I dropped, the blackened dirt diggin' into my shins. My shoulders started shakin' as I tried to breathe. Tears streamed out and I couldn't control them, flowin' down my cheeks and fallin' to the char. Yorick didn't say anythin', those tiny tears still holdin' back, and he closed his eyes and let out a long, long breath.

"…If it makes any difference to you, she was truly unaware of my plans," Blake turned back to Yorick. "I kept her in the dark to ensure her fear upon kidnapping would be genuine. All she wanted was to help her friend, without ruining your… delicate, relationship."

Yorick didn't move. His kept his eyes closed, and they squeezed shut just a bit.

"…It doesn't, make a difference, actually," Yorick opened his eyes and turned to Blake. "All that matters is that you and that dragon staged this elaborate plan to lure me out and end my life. But, I want to know one more thing from you, Trotsky."

"Which is?"

"…How did you do it," he looked to the charizard. "Breaking through to that pokemon was categorically impossible. What did you do to establish yourself as his trainer?"

"…Well" Blake shrugged, another grin showin' up on his face. "I didn't."

"What?" Yorick turned his head. "It obeyed your orders, even without you around. It falsely attacked you at my camp and here, just to keep your cover. In what sense are you _not_ his trainer?"

"In every sense but name," Blake took a step back, reachin' behind him and scratchin' Z's chin. "Z is my partner, and my best friend, above all else. He doesn't obey my orders at all, because I don't give him orders in the way I do with my other pokemon. He's more than capable of making his own decisions on the fly; in fact, that fight we had in the staff building was completely unplanned."

"You didn't plan that?"

"Not in the slightest. But I thought it would help me gain your trust for this rescue mission. I'm certain Z thought that too, though in the off-chance he didn't, I knew he would adapt as necessary."

"…I see," Yorick looked at the ground between them. "I was focused on founding myself as the dominant, thinking it would quell his unruly behavior… It seems that I was doomed from the start."

"Suppose that's today's theme, isn't it," Blake's grin dropped.

"…Do what you must, Trotsky," Yorick looked Blake in the eye. "Then go back to your Order and tell them the mission is complete. But one day, you will open your eyes, you'll see that you've only helped the people who cause Orryn's problems. And when you do, know that you've stifled a chance at real change in this region, because you were too afraid to let go of a corrupt leadership and work toward something better."

"Tch," Blake sneered. "If the National Parlaiment was as bad as you make it to be, you wouldn't need to brainwash people to your cause. I'll admit that our current form of government isn't perfect, but I will gladly take that over the lawlessness you propose."

"Only proving my point," he shook his head. "Too scared to even consider change…"

"Save it for the afterlife, Yorick. Maybe someone actually cares on the other side."

"Blake, wait!" I wiped some tears off my cheek and looked up. "Please don't kill him, please!"

"And why not?" Blake looked down at me. "Letting him live means letting Gamma live. And that means nothing but brainwashing and chaos consuming the Orryn region. You saw the Siphon devices yourself; imagine everyone you love hooked up to one of those, twisting their minds until they're nothing but slaves."

"…Well," I stopped, lookin' to Blake's feet. "Shouldn't he face trial, have a chance to-"

"Not an option," Blake cut me off. "It would take several weeks for a trial to begin; all too easy to twist into an example of the Parliament's incompetence. Someone else fills in for Yorick, operations continue, Gamma lives on. Anything else?"

"…But," my breath got shaky. "I dunno, but there's gotta be another-"

"Emma," Yorick spoke easy.

I stopped and looked to Yorick. He was lookin' me right in the eye, no more tears in his anymore.

"…It's alright," he nodded a bit. "It doesn't matter what happens to me… you can still hold your promise."

I opened my mouth to answer. My throat tightened up, and no words could come out. Another tear welled up in my eye, rolled down my cheek and fell to the ground.

"She won't hold any promises to _you,_ " Blake growled. "Not after you broke your promise to her, and brainwashing her best friend."

Yorick didn't say nothin'. Like he didn't hear Blake at all. All he did was keep his eyes on mine, and keep my eyes on his.

"…But you're clearly beyond reason," Blake stood tall. "We wouldn't be here otherwise… Any last words, Yorick?"

His eyes closed at last, his head droppin' a bit. A little dirt kicked up with a breeze, dust danced 'round his feet and up into his dirty auburn hair, gettin' caught in his beard. Yorick took a deep breath, and looked right at me; he was formin' tears again.

"…I'm sorry," Yorick said quiet.

"You're sorry?" Blake's eyebrows furrowed, and he slowly started my way. "Too little too late… Finish him off, Z."

Z instantly reared up and opened his mouth. A massive, star-shaped flame burst shot like a cannon, the heat spiked up to scorch my skin. And before I could make a sound, Yorick was struck by Z's fire blast, disappearin' in a blindin' blue light.


	10. Chapter 9: A Monster and a Dragon

Chapter 9: A Monster and a Dragon _(Blake)_

A small, silver key slid effortlessly into the matching lock. I gave it a turn, and the shackle readily sprang free from the body. With a bit of rattling, the silver lock came free, and I pulled the chain off Emma's ankle and tossed it aside.

Emma shot to her feet and sprinted to the spot where Yorick stood moments ago, but now there was nothing left, not even ashes. She fell to her knees again and began patting the ground with her hands, gently at first, then faster and faster until she was frantically scattering charred dirt. I looked on for a moment, then turned to Z, who watched Emma with his glowing gaze. My mega charizard started towards me, the claws on his feet shifting the earth with each step.

"…Blake," Emma's shoulders heaved, and she began to sob. "…How could you do this? How?!"

"…I did what was necessary," I looked back at her. "Nothing more."

Emma's hands stopped searching the ground, coming to rest directly in front of her knees. Tears hit the ground right between them. Without a sound, Z rounded my shoulders and stopped behind me, following my eyes to the girl who had fallen to the dirt.

"But," Emma sniffled, her voice barely more than a whisper. "I loved him."

She sobbed once, twice, before completely breaking down. Tears streamed uncontrollably to the ground, and she covered her eyes with her ash-coated hands.

A low, thunderous growl reverberated in my ears. I looked over my shoulder at Z, who was baring his teeth in Emma's direction, a nasty glare in his eye. My jaw muscles were clenching my teeth tighter than a vice, but I forced a breath into my lungs and relaxed with a long, long exhale.

"…You don't know what love is, Mrs. Turner," I spoke in monotone, making every word as clear as humanly possible.

"…Really now," Emma raised her head, barely glancing behind her. "You killed him, you wrecked the camp, how would _you_ know a thing about-"

"How would _I_ know? How would _I KNOW_?!" I snapped at her. "Maybe when I watched my brother _DIE,_ right in front of me!"

She whipped around, her eyes going wide. Black smears ran down her cheeks, made uneven by the streaks of tears still fresh on her face.

"I would know when he blew Team Siphon to hell at the Sagna Power Plant!" I growled. "So they couldn't hurt or kill anyone else for their twisted goals. So you, me, our friends, our family, and everyone in Orryn could be at peace!"

"…That-" she gasped for air, her voice dropped back to a whimper. "That was your brother?"

"Yes, that was. My brother Colin knew a thing about love; he gave his life to end Team Siphon and protect those he cared for. So I don't give a flying fuck what you felt for him, Emma; Yorick was starting the next Siphon! And _that_ wasn't happening ON MY WATCH!"

Emma only sobbed again, her head falling back into her hands. More tears seeped out between her fingers. A wail escaped her mouth, before descending back into silent crying.

A breath gently slipped into my lungs, and I let it out through my nose, slowly, and audibly. I turned to Z again; his eyes were on mine, his lips flat along his face. My gaze fell to the ground, and I took another long lungful of air.

"…Okay look, I- …I didn't mean that," I looked to Emma again. "It was only a few weeks ago, and… and I'm still, trying to… Never mind, here."

With a few silent steps I reached Emma's side, and I knelt down next to her. My good right hand reached into a pouch on the side of my chest, ripping open the velcro and pulling out two small, plastic bags. One was labeled "Blake Trotsky," and the other "Emma Turner," both with six coin-sized pokeballs in them. I held Emma's bag out to her and put mine away again.

"…Huh?" she looked up slightly. "These are- my pokemon. How did you get them?"

"…Let me back up for a moment," I sighed. "I'll give you the whole story."

* * *

Wood creaked and hinges squealed as the shed door crept open. It was tiny, barely tall enough for me to stand straight in and barely wider than my wingspan. The whole left wall was lined with shovels and rakes on racks, some small enough to be used by a toddler, others more than big enough for the largest adults. A set of locks – large and small, all silver steel – lied on the ground directly in front of me. In a box in the corner was a pile of black, plastic handheld radios, and I promptly snagged the one on top and clipped it to the back of my jeans. Right next to the box were a variety of chains, black metal and thick enough to hold an aggron's weight. I grabbed the biggest chain they had and hoisted it over my shoulder, picked up the biggest lock and its matching key, then stepped back and gently kicked the shed's door closed again. It shut with another creak of wood and a gentle click.

I adjusted the chain on my shoulder and glanced behind me. It was dark now, the only light came from the lampposts and cabins of Camp Crauss. The shed was tucked away in the shadow the staff building, right in view of Steel Cabin's window next to me. My eyes wandered around the corner of the building and to the clubhouse across the way; Yorick's voice was speaking though a microphone, but it was too far to make out anything intelligible. As if I cared to listen in the first place.

With a few silent steps in the grass, I walked around the shed and started along the rear of the staff building. I began to jog as I crossed the main road and continued behind Dragon's Claw, careful not to rattle the chain too much. My shoes started picking up mud and flinging it onto the calves of my jeans, but it did little to slow me down, only made a wet squishing noise with each footstep.

Mud gave way to sand as I approached the shores of the lake. Without slowing down, I turned left and followed the edge of the water, away from the rest of the camp. At the furthest point from Dragon's Claw and the rest of the camp, I turned away from the lake and kept going, up the shore and then down into the valley below.

Upon reaching the bottom I slowed, then stopped. Illuminated by a full moon were vague shapes of trees and bushes around me, obscuring my view of the rest of the camp. Ahead was a clearing, where Yorick's salamences would spar for training purposes, but they weren't around at the moment. In fact, nothing was around at the moment; I was alone. With my free hand, I reached into my pocket and felt a condensed pokeball, pulling it out and letting it rest in my palm.

The ball shook slightly in my hand, and I moved it into the moonlight as I looked closer. It was pure black, with a gleaming silver button, and painted blue flames rising from the bottom. It was an awareness ball, designed and built by Professor Redwood, allowing the pokemon inside to be aware of outside events. With a push of the button, the ball instantly grew to fill my hand. I pushed it again, and the ball sprung open, letting out a brilliant flash of white light. A huge, black and blue charizard materialized in front of me, his glowing red eyes settling on me as sapphire flames began to stream from his mouth.

"Okay, here's the deal," I put my pokeball away and looked up at Z. "You know what's going on with Team Gamma, so now we take Yorick down. But they can't know it was a plot, in fact there can't be any suspicion at all. Thing is, they don't know you're with me, so we're gonna keep it that way. Right?"

The black dragon nodded.

"The basic idea is this; you're gonna show up, cause a commotion, then kidnap a specific someone. I'll be on a rescue team, Yorick will be too if all goes to plan. Once we find her, you'll get rid of the extras and I'll handle the rest. Sounds good?"

Z nodded again.

"Take this," I pulled the chain off my shoulder and extended it to the dragon, who readily took it in one claw. He easily wrapped the metal links around his hand, then reached out his free hand for the lock. I quickly gave that to him too, putting the key in my jeans pocket. In that same pocket was a rectangular piece of photo paper, which I quickly grabbed and pulled out.

"First thing's first, we're gonna need a lair of some sort," I continued. "Make sure you can trap the rescue team within it somehow. Once you're done with that, head for the camp. Give me a roar at 30 seconds out, another at 10 seconds. Make a scene; you know, blow some stuff up, take down their salamences, show off a little bit."

Z grinned, showing his massive ivory spikes for teeth.

"Yeah, have a little fun," I grinned back. "Property damage is good, just keep camper casualties to a minimum. When you're ready to bail, you'll have to take someone with you, look here."

I moved the photo paper into the moonlight, and Z leaned in to see. Barely recognizable was a picture, landscape-style, with 200-some teenagers, all 17-18 years old. They were divided into three rows, back to front – one sitting, one kneeling, and one standing – and a dozen men and women in staff uniforms on either side. Towards the left was me, standing in the back row, with Matt kneeling in front of me, both smiling at the camera. All the way on the right side was Emma, sitting on the grass right next to Yorick. He was standing in the very front of his staff. Both Yorick and Emma were also smiling for the picture.

"This one, she's the one you want," I pointed to Emma in the photograph. "I'll stay close to her, to make you're life easy. Use that chain and lock to keep her wherever you set up shop. Now, she'll have a radio on her, it'll look like this."

I stuffed the photo back in my pocket. Reaching to the back of my hip, I unclipped the radio on my jeans, then brought it into the moonlight for Z to see.

"You should remove it from her after she makes contact with the camp. From there, just wait for the rescue attempt. I'll give you this signal through her radio when we're on the way, listen."

Z leaned in and turned his head, putting his ear close to the radio. I pushed the talk button a few times, and the speaker made some static; three short bursts of static, three long ones, three short ones, the standard S.O.S. signal. I repeated it twice.

"That'll be your cue to prepare the trap. Once we arrive, handle the rest of Yorick's crew, and we can figure out what we wanna do from there. Is there anything unclear?"

My dragon looked up and shook his head.

"You know who you need to take?"

He nodded.

"Then let's get to work," I put the radio in my back pocket. "I'll be ready on your go. We keep this quick, and Team Gamma will be gone by the time the world knew they existed."

Z nodded one last time, then turned around and launched skyward with a rush of air, quickly banking down to level out just above the trees. My dragon rustled the leaves below with a few flaps of his wings, turning into a faint blue light that banked around a mountain in the distance. I silently turned around and started back up the hill, my shoes collecting more mud with each step.

As I approached the lake's shore again I stopped. Campers were trickling out of the clubhouse, dispersing towards their cabins. A lone woman, silhouetted by the light from the camp, sat at the edge of the water, watching those in the main courtyard walk away.

"…But I guess he ain't comin," she muttered to herself, getting to her feet again. "Hope he didn't-"

"Emma," I whispered.

She jumped and whipped around, dark brown hair tossing around her shoulder, hazel eyes quickly focusing on me. Without a word I climbed up the rest of the way, stopping and standing in front of her.

"Where the heck was you?!" Emma quietly screamed at me. "I thought you disappeared too!"

* * *

"Trotsky!" Yorick's voice roared over the smolder. "My men can't get there in time! You have to get up! TROTSKY!"

I only groaned, nearly falling to my stomach on the staff building floor. Yorick could only watch helplessly as Z backed Emma into a corner. Her eyes were glued to my dragon's. She was completely immobilized. It couldn't be more perfect.

"…Yorick," Emma muttered, the words barely escaping her lips.

"Emma!" Yorick shouted at her. "Go! GO! For Arceus sake, please-"

Z reached out with both claws and effortlessly lifted Emma by her armpits. My dragon stuck her to his shoulder, careful not to impale her on his shoulder spikes, and started into the smolder.

"EMMA!" he cried, dropping to his knees in front of the door. His eyes had gone wide, and a tear ran down his cheek.

"YORIIIIIIIIIIICK!" Emma unleashed an earsplitting scream, flailing wildly in a pitiful attempt to free herself. Z only grunted and pushed her up on his shoulder, giving Emma one last glimpse of Yorick before they disappeared behind the veil of smoke.

Heavy, rapid footsteps rushed into the room behind me, and stopped. With a glance over my shoulder, I saw Yorick's two staff members standing by the doorway, one with short black hair, the other with a distinctly gaunt face. They were panting loudly, scanning the place for any sign of Emma or the dragon, their faces steadily dropping when they couldn't find one.

"…Yorick?" the black-haired staff member turned to his boss.

"…Evacuate the building," Yorick spoke quietly, wiping his cheek with the back of his hand. "And regroup outside."

The camp leader rose to his feet, then turned and marched out of the building. The black-haired staff member whipped around and ran back the way he came. I arched my back and started pushing myself up.

"Come on, Trotsky," the gaunt-faced staff member marched my way and put a hand under my arm.

But I swatted it away, putting a foot under me as I took a deep breath. Yorick's follower slowly reached out again but stopped, backing away and starting down the hall, following his comrade.

I glanced over my shoulder again. No one else in the room. I sprung to my feet, tip-toeing towards the doorway and peering into the hall. The second staff member jogged out the far door and turned left. After waiting an extra moment to ensure his departure, I ran down the hall after them. But instead of following them out of the building, I took a left just before the exit, finding another stairwell leading to the basement and following it down.

The temperature was rising fast in the lower levels; I had to be quick. I jogged down the basement hall, scanning left and right as I approached the gaping hole in the ceiling. About half-way down was a trio of file cabinets embedded in the wall, made of metal so solid it looked like it could withstand a machamp's punch. I pulled open the bottommost drawer; it was filled with dividers by last name, and between each was a plastic bag filled with condensed pokeballs. Closer to the back were files named "Trotsky" and "Turner," and sure enough, two plastic bags filled with coin-sized pokeballs were waiting. I pulled them out and stuffed them as deep into my pockets as I could make them go. Then, with a quick and quiet breath, I turned for the main stairwell, walking through the door I kicked in earlier and starting up through the smoke.

* * *

"…We better get you going," I said quietly. "You should be back before nightfall."

Emma said nothing, only sat in the charred dirt and stared blankly ahead. Her face was still covered in ash, and streaked with tears, but she had stopped crying by now. She hardly seemed aware of anything; even the putrid stink of burning flesh and the bright blue light coming from our left, where Z was setting an exploud's body aflame. The blue fires that once surrounded us quickly consumed the dead pokemon, and it only took seconds before they vanished, leaving behind a scorched skeleton with a large, cracked skull.

"…And when you get back to the camp," I started again. "Tell them we got you out, sent you away while we distracted the charizard or something like that. Bring Ruva to the basement to the staff building, and have her hooked up to the Siphon device again. There should be a 'reset' button on the main console; that will bring her back to normal."

"…Ok," Emma answered flatly, rising to her feet and starting for the smoldering trench ahead. Only embers remained in the ditch by now, and she took one long step over it as she started into the trees.

"And Emma," I spoke up.

She stopped and looked behind her. Without a word, her eyes became locked on mine, her face flat and without emotion.

"…I just want you to know, you never deserved this. You've done nothing wrong. …So I hope I can make things up to you. Someday."

Emma only stared at me for another moment, then turned back around and continued forward. Her footsteps grew softer as she walked ahead, barely avoiding the surrounding bushes and disappearing into the forest.

I looked to my left, where Z was standing over the exploud's skeleton. His glowing red eyes were on the forest ahead, following Emma further than I could see. A brief, low growl sounded from Z's throat, and he turned his head to look back at me.

"I think, that's all the bodies," I scanned the circle. Two more blackened exploud skeletons lie in the charred dirt, with a human skeleton next to each. All were on their stomach or back, and not a trace of their identities remained.

"You got that one that flew out of the ring, right?" I looked back at Z.

Z grunted and pointed behind him with a claw. Propped on the rocky face behind me was a third human skeleton, his ribcage nothing more than a spider-web of bone fragments.

"Perfect," I nodded. "Then that's… everything in our control. Now we just head back to Redwood and get a debrief."

My charizard nodded, taking a few steps my way and lowering his shoulder, allowing me to easily climb onto his back. I met him halfway and put a hand between the spikes on his shoulder, but I stopped before climbing on.

"And hey," I looked to my charizard. "You were beyond awesome, big guy. I couldn't be more proud of you."

Z looked over his shoulder and right at me, a grin appearing on his face. I grinned right back as I jumped up and swung my leg over, sitting right below my charizard's shoulders. With no hesitation, Z bent his legs and launched high into the air, the cool air howling in my ears and whipping my hair around. My pokemon and I banked right as we leveled off, then dove slightly to pick up speed, keeping us low above the densely forested mountains.


	11. Chapter 10: Loose Ends, Untied

Chapter 10: Loose Ends, Untied

"Matt!" Ross shouted across the courtyard, by the smoking ruins of Dragon's Claw. "Get over here and help Noah with this one!"

"Yes sir!" I answered, running faster across the grass and towards Yorick's second-in-command. Noah was bent down next to him, still in those Black and green sweats, pulling a girl's right arm over his shoulder. As I got close, I noticed that her leg was bleeding at the knee, her short red hair was dirty and knotted, and cuts and burn-marks hid freckles on her face. It was Lindsey, one of Emma's friends.

"Take her other arm, Matt." Noah said calmly. I didn't waste a moment and grabbed her left wrist, turning around to bar her arm on my shoulder. We quickly hoisted her up and started walking back to clinic again, letting her feet drag on the ground behind us.

I breathed in and out, shifting the girl on my arm and taking a glance around. Only a couple more campers were still lying the ground by now, and they all had other campers close by, taking care of them as best as they can. The salamence in the middle had been moved, and now there was a huge hole in the middle of the courtyard. The buildings weren't on fire anymore, but the staff building was part-way collapsed and smoking, just like Dragon's Claw behind us. It was starting to get cold; the sun was behind the mountains by now, and the sky above was a brilliant reddish-pink. A few small, purple clouds moved quickly over the camp with the wind.

"Uuuuuuum," Lindsey groaned, raising her head a bit and looking around with glassy, sparkling blue eyes. "What… where…"

"Ssshhhhhh," I said quietly, turning to her as I walked. "Save your strength, Lindsey. You were hurt pretty bad."

"Matt?" she looked up at me. "What happened? My knee, it's… it's killing me…"

"Some kind of mega-charizard attacked," I looked forward again, following the asphalt path to the clinic. "When that meteor shower hit, I got so scared, and I ran straight for Fire Cabin without even thinking…"

"It's alright, Matt," Noah said. "No one expects you to be the hero, especially against _that…_ "

"I know, it's just-" my shoulders dropped a bit. "I wish I could have helped more in the moment. Lots of campers were hurt, really, really bad."

"…I wish I could have, too," he nodded, shifting Lindsey's arm up slightly.

I gripped Lindsey's other arm a bit tighter, keeping her right in between Noah and I as we marched up to the clinic's doors. Before we even reached the main door, another staff member rushed out of the building to meet us. He had short, black hair and a normal staff-outfit marked with dirt and ash. He crouched in front of Lindsey, putting his arms around her back and thighs and lifting her off our shoulders. Without saying a word, he turned back around and marched into the staff building, carrying Lindsey with him.

"I hope she's okay," I sighed, shuffling my feet as I turned back around.

"I think she will be," Noah turned around too. "She was better off than some of the others."

"Yeah, I think someone had a piece of glass in her leg. Poor guy…"

We started back down the path to the courtyard. A little bit of wind picked up, carrying ashes into the grass. Three groups of campers were left outside, about four or five in a group, all standing or crouching over someone.

"…What now?" I asked.

"I dunno," Noah answered. "The rescue team will be back soon. We better check with Ross, he might still need help while Yorick's not here."

"Ok, let's go," I started walking faster. Noah picked it up to stay with me, hitting the asphalt and heading for the grass aga-

"Emma?" a girl stepped out from a group, calling to someone behind us. "Emma, is that you?!"

Noah and I stopped right where we were and whipped around. Walking up from the hiking path was a woman my age, alone. She was in a grey blouse and a white skirt, which were both covered in black dirt. She had brown hair the color of chocolate, knotted and bits of ash scattered in it, and her face was also covered in dirt, but it was more streaked and uneven around her eyes. And- …her eyes. They were glassy, and blank; it was almost like the soul inside was gone, nowhere to be found.

"Out of the way," Ross muttered as he stepped around us. A staff member with a gaunt face joined him from the ruins of the staff building, and they quickly met Emma on the path. A few campers darted past us to gather around her. We followed close behind them.

"EMMA!" a high-pitched girl's voice cried. Ruva ran out of Fairy cabin full-speed, straight for the small crowd around Emma, then plowed through the other campers to get face-to-face with her best friend.

But Emma didn't react, even when Ruva stood right in front of her. Ruva's short, curly brown hair bounced up and down with her in excitement, but she slowed down, and stopped when her friend said nothing.

"…Emma?" Ruva cocked her head.

"Emma," Ross pushed past the campers and stopped next to Ruva. "Are you alright? Where are the others?"

"…Dead," Emma answered flatly.

"…Dead?" Ross barely spoke up. "All of them?"

"All of them."

Ross's skin went pale. His eyes fell to Emma's feet. Emma only giggled; a cute little, 'hehe,' that barely left her mouth. Noah visibly shivered the tiniest, little bit.

"…My apologies, Emma," Ross looked up. "Let's get you inside."

His hand twitched a little, and he cautiously brought it up and reached out to Emma. She didn't react. Ross took one step forward, reaching for her shoulder and putting his hand on-

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" she shrieked, swatting Ross's hand away. We all flinched and took half a step back. Ross, the other staff-member, and the other campers all stared at Emma with wide eyes, but hers stayed blank, and her face was completely flat.

Emma's gaze wandered along the ground, past the campers and settling on the staff building. She took a few slow steps past Ruva, who only stared at the ground. The other campers shuffled out of the way, letting Emma walk through and towards the smoking building. Ross and the other staff member followed next to her. Once they passed the other campers, Emma leaned over to Ross and whispered something to him.

"Move along," Ross spoke up and looked back at the campers. "Return to your cabins, there's nothing to see here."

The remaining campers stalled. But, a few slowly left the crowd and started walking back towards the cabins. Emma, Ross and his following staff member marched on to the front door of staff building, vanishing into the smoking doorway. The remaining campers trickled past us, until only Ruva was left, standing where she was. She fell to her knees, and her shoulders heaved up and down as she began to cry.

"…Yorick," Noah muttered. "He… he's gone?"

"…And Blake, too," I looked down, my shoulders dropped. "The whole rescue team."

"He…" a tear rolled down his cheek, and he wiped it away with the back of he hand. "They all, gave their lives, for Emma."

I only nodded. My arms, my legs, my whole body was getting heavier by the second. Ruva was still on her knees, weeping into her hands.

"…But, Team Gamma," Noah blinked another tear away. "If Yorick's gone now, what about Orryn? What about fighting the Parlaiment? What about…"

"…It's okay, Noah," I picked my head up. "We can make Orryn better ourselves, and we don't need to fight anyone to do it. Yorick stood up for what he believed in, for what he thought was right. And we can learn something from that; we can stand up for what we think is right, too."

"…But, how? Without Team Gamma, how do we know what to do?"

"We know by what we believe. So, what do you believe we should do, Noah?"

"…I mean," Noah squinted, and rubbed the side of his head. "There's still campers who are hurt, and there's a lot of damage to clean up."

"That's a great place to start. Why don't you check with Ross? He'll know what to do first."

"Right," Noah nodded, stepping around me and towards the staff building. I quietly approached Ruva, who was still on her knees, and bent down next to her.

"Come on, Ruva," I said quietly, putting a hand in her shoulder. "Let's get you back to Fairy cabin."

She nodded, her face still in her hands as she got back to her feet. I kept my hand on her shoulder and turned around, guiding Ruva back down the path.

* * *

Creaking hinges broke the silence as I pushed the door open, and peered into Fire cabin's bedroom. No one was inside. A bunch of small holes were in the roof, and bits of rock and wood were all over the place; I should clean that up later. There were a dozen unmade beds, and a backpack or duffel bag full of clothes next to each.

I sighed loudly, shuffling over to one of the further beds and sitting down at its foot. On the ground by the headboard was a red and white backpack, with a black ring across the middle to make it look like a big pokeball. Next to the backpack was a folded black tee, which still had a nametag with my name on it. Some button-down shirts and nicer shorts were also folded and tucked away in the backpack.

"Wow…" I muttered, letting my shoulders sink a bit. "I didn't know things could go downhill that fast, in one day…"

The ceiling squeaked a bit, and black bits of rubble fell through one of the tiny holes. They landed on the bed in the far corner of the room, and a few pebbles fell into the black duffel bag next to it, getting some of the clothes dirty.

"…I guess I should get Blake's stuff together," I let out another sigh. "Might have to see Ross about sending it back to… Seel Beach City, is that what he said?"

A breeze outside rustled the trees, scattered more debris. Some more pebbles and ash fell into the room from the holes in the ceiling. A faint speaker went off and made static outside, followed by a door slamming open, maybe in one of the cabins.

"…Yeah, he had that journal for Professor Redwood," I pushed up to my feet, taking another look at Blake's bag. "His lab's down in Seel Beach City… but, there's only clothes in his bag, where did his journal-"

Heavy and rapid footsteps climbed the stairs and started down the hall behind me. I turned around to see a tan-skinned boy my age, in black and green sweats, rush around the doorway and barrel towards me full-speed. His long black hair and wild, brown-speckled eyes barely registered before he lunged at me, slamming into my chest and throwing me to the ground. My head thumped onto the wood and pain shot through my brain.

"N-Noah?" I barely said as he grabbed for my arm and started pulling me back up. "Noah, what are you doing?!"

"Come on, Matt!" Noah looked me right in the eye, a nasty smile on his face. "Gamma's got a new boss! And some unfinished business!"

—End—


	12. Author's Note

Afterward:

I do not own pokemon, their images, story elements, etc. All rights of Pokemon goes to GameFreak, and all other rights go to their respective owners. I just felt the need to say that so no one sues me.

Also, this story is a part of a much larger series. If this one get's a good response, I have a prequel and a sequel lined up. Feel free to leave your thoughts in the review section, and thanks for reading!


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